Romantic Period
1790-1830
Historical Background
· European
War:1793-1815
· The French
Revolution-1789
· Extinction
of the French Republic
· Rise and
Destruction of the power of Napoleon
· Restoration
of the Bourbon dynasty
· Reform
Bill-1832
Effects
Long
war brought inevitable misery
Low
wages, unemployment, and heavy taxation gave rise to fiery resentment among the
common people
The
Reform Bill was a grudging concession to the general discontent
Poets
William Wordsworth
1770-1850
Conscious
rebel and reformer
Philosophy
He
endowed Nature with a new meaning and significance
He
believes that Nature is the greatest teacher of man
His
great contribution to English poetry was the re-interpretation of Nature as a
vital entity, a speaking presence and an acting principle
Nature
was regarded as exerting edifying influence on human life
Wordsworth
made a revolt against urban industrial civilization and considered the evils of
modern life as stemming from man's separation from Nature
He
made a fervent plea for return to Nature and wanted through his poetry to
re-establish a spiritual kinship between man and Nature and thus to restore
humanity to the glory and dignity which they had lost under the increasing
impact of industrial revolution.
He
perceived the presence of a spirit that is imminent in Nature and the mind of
man
He
saw Nature of man with new eyes and his whole work is an attempt to communicate
the new vision
He
also celebrated the dignity and beauty of common men
Language:
His
poetry was written in the language of the common men
He
spearheaded the movement against the neo-classical school/artificial drab
poetry of the 18th century which was town bred and which indicated a total
neglect of Nature and the humbler aspects of human life
He
threw his weight against the 'poetic diction' -the gaudy, insane phraseology of
the 18th century
Works-
Lyrical
Ballads (1798) published jointly with Coleridge
Tintern
Abbey and The Prelude are eloquent expressions of his philosophy of Nature
The
Prelude analyzed the growth of his poetic genius during his childhood and youth
and explained in detail the development of his attitude to Nature
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