Concetti Chiave
- Born in 1770 in England's Lake District, his early love for nature shaped his future writing.
- Lived in France, supported the French Revolution, and had a child with Annette Vallon before returning to England.
- Published Lyrical Ballads with Coleridge in 1798, marking the start of romantic poetry focused on personal feelings and everyday life.
- His work introduced revolutionary poetry that was more relatable to a broader audience, contrary to the traditional elevated topics.
- Wordsworth's philosophy was influenced by Plato, believing the soul loses its perfect knowledge after birth due to societal corruption.
Childhood and Love for Nature
He was born in 1770 in the Lake District, in the north of England, a lovely place and for this reason in his childhood he had a great love for nature and it will influence his way of writing in the future. There are a few poets of the First generation that lived and worked here and they go under the name of Lake poets. Very important in his life is the time he passed in France, he was a firm supporter of the ideas carried on by the French revolution and he hoped they could have been exported to the rest of the world. Here in France he met Annette Vallon, a French girl, and he felt in love with her and had a baby by her. But then he started having economic problems and so he had to came back to England for good, abandoning the two girls. After a few years he started feeling guilty because of what he did and so he tried to remove from his mind everything connected to France, starting to hate it, beginning from its politics (this happens also because France and England were in those days at war (Napoleon’s wars) and because of the disappointment for the failure of revolutionary ideals) and he became a conservator.
Publication of the Lyrical Ballads
In 1798 he published with his friend Coleridge their great collection Lyrical Ballads. This is a very important day, because it was the birth of romantic poetry and lyrical poetry: the poetry of the analysis of yourself and of feelings, of the inner life and these topics are used for the first time, because before they were considered unfit for poetry, the real poetry topics were things like heroes, myths, elevate topics etc., no one who writes of himself. It’s also an innovative poetry because it’s about everyday life, it’s something everyone can see himself in; it’s for a larger public, very uncommon for those days: it’s a revolutionary poetry for a revolutionary age.
Philosophy of the Soul by Wordsworth
Wordsworth believed that the soul after birth gradually loses its perfect knowledge: it’s a philosophical idea took from Plato. There’s a soul also before the birth and he knows every perfect things; when you’re born, you lose a part of this knowledge and little by little, with the contact of the corrupt society, you lose it definitely.
Domande da interrogazione
- How did Wordsworth's childhood environment influence his writing?
- What impact did Wordsworth's time in France have on his life and beliefs?
- Why is the publication of "Lyrical Ballads" considered significant in literary history?
- What philosophical idea about the soul did Wordsworth adopt, and how did it influence his work?
Wordsworth was born in the Lake District, a beautiful area in the north of England, which fostered his love for nature. This deep appreciation for nature significantly influenced his writing style and themes.
During his time in France, Wordsworth supported the French Revolution's ideals and fell in love with Annette Vallon, with whom he had a child. However, economic difficulties forced him to return to England, leading to feelings of guilt and a shift towards conservatism, especially as France and England were at war.
Published in 1798 with Coleridge, "Lyrical Ballads" marked the birth of romantic poetry, focusing on self-analysis, feelings, and everyday life. It was revolutionary for its time, as it diverged from traditional themes of heroes and myths, making poetry accessible to a broader audience.
Wordsworth embraced the Platonic idea that the soul possesses perfect knowledge before birth, which diminishes over time due to societal corruption. This belief influenced his exploration of the soul and inner life in his poetry.
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