Wordsworth Notes

Wordsworth Series, 2011
I am not proposing to dig into Wordsworth by doing the whole biog/writing/criticism

thing that we did on Blake and Clare, rather let us let the words speak.
Suggested timetable
1. “The world is too much with us”

28th Jan, Beverley
An introduction to Wordsworth’s poetry via conversations over “The
world is too much with us”, page 114 in your books.
2. Escape to the Country or Were the Romantics Hopeless?

11th Feb, Bransholme
An investigation of Wordsworth key themes via
“The Tables Turned”, page 32
“Nutting”, page 43
“A Narrow Girdle of Rough Stones and Crags”, page 51
“I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud”, page 126
3. “that inward eye”

18th March, Beverley
A Wordsworth practical at nightfall. Experience and recollection and
rummagings on the Westwood. Sunset is at 18:15 so I suggest meeting at
17:30 for this solstice treat.
4. Reconnect
I propose a Saturday visit to my favourite place in these parts, Tophill
Low, packed lunch, good company and Kingfishers followed by favourite
readings.
Themes
I am indebted to http://www.wordsworth.org.uk/index.asp for the following ...
Nature: in all its forms, was important to Wordsworth, but he rarely uses simple
descriptions. Instead he concentrates on the ways in which he responds and relates to
the world. He uses his poetry to look at the relationship between nature and human
life, and to explore the belief that nature can have an impact on our emotional and
spiritual lives.
Some Key Poems:

Ode: Intimations of Immortality
Tintern Abbey
The Prelude
Imagination: Wordsworth saw imagination as a powerful, active force that works

alongside our senses, interpreting the way we view the world and influencing how we
react to events. He believed that a strong imaginative life is essential for our well-
being. Often in Wordsworth's poetry, his intense imaginative effort translates into the
great visionary moments of his work.
Some Key Poems:
Ode: Intimations of Immortality
The Prelude
The French Revolution: The Revolution began in 1789 with the storming of the Bastille,
Paris's notorious prison where those who were seen as a threat to the state were kept,
often in terrible conditions and without trial. This was the first time that the leaders of
a movement had been able to mobilise the urban working class to rise against the
establishment of church and state. The motto of the Revolution was Liberty, Equality,
Brotherhood and it stood for ideas such as social justice, personal freedoms, and the
idea that there were inalienable human rights, which defied class, wealth or gender.
Wordsworth supported many of the ideals of the French Revolution and to do so
could be dangerous. To speak or write in support was a criminal offence. In the
summer of 1797, while living in Somerset, Wordsworth and Coleridge, his friend and
fellow poet, were suspected of being French spies, but a government agent sent to
investigate concluded that they were merely a mischievous gang of disaffected
Englishmen.
Some Key Poems:

The Prelude (Book 6, Books 9-12)
The Revolution in Poetry: Wordsworth and Coleridge were fired by the ideas of the time,
which, in terms of literature and art, brought a new stress on individual creativity and
a sense of freedom to innovate. The two poets helped to bring about a revolution in
poetry, giving it fresh impetus and a new direction. In their day, Wordsworth and
Coleridge were seen as experimental poets, whose work challenged accepted ideas
about what poetry was and how it might be written.
Some Key Poems:

Lyrical Ballads
Preface to Lyrical Ballads
Society: Wordsworth is often considered to be an egocentric poet interested only in

himself, his experiences and his development, but this is not quite a fair reflection. He
supported social reform and believed in what were popularly known as The Rights of
Man, the rights to individual freedoms of thought and expression, the right to justice.
Society was undergoing huge changes, and the drive for economic prosperity led to an
increase in both urban and rural poverty. Wordsworth explores the impact of such
changes on the emotional and spiritual lives of the characters in his poems.
Some Key Poems:

The Ruined Cottage
Michael, a pastoral poem
Resolution and Independence
Relationships: Wordsworth was not living and working in isolation; his friends and
family were an important source of support and inspiration. Of his sister Dorothy, he
wrote, 'She gave me eyes, she gave me ears', and, by his own admission, the best two
lines in the poem I wandered lonely as a cloud were by his wife Mary.
Some Key Poems:
Home at Grasmere
She was a Phantom of Delight (written for his wife Mary)
The Sparrow's Nest

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Wordsworth Series, 2011

I am not proposing to dig into Wordsworth by doing the whole biog/writing/criticism

1. “The world is too much with us”

2. Escape to the Country or Were the Romantics Hopeless?

3. “that inward eye”

I am indebted to http://www.wordsworth.org.uk/index.asp for the following ...

Some Key Poems:

Imagination: Wordsworth saw imagination as a powerful, active force that works

Some Key Poems:

Some Key Poems:

Society: Wordsworth is often considered to be an egocentric poet interested only in

Some Key Poems:

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