Preface to Lyrical Ballads

William Wordsworth

1. Who is Wordsworth?

Ans: Wordsworth is a major English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge,
launched the Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication Lyrical Ballads
in 1798.

2. What is pantheism?

Ans: Pantheism is a belief that God is present in all the things and all the beings of this
universe.

4. What is a Ballad?

Ans: Ballad is a narrative poem which tells a grave story through dialogue and action. Its
language is simple and theme is often tragic.

5. What is “Lyrical Ballads”?

Ans: Lyrical Ballads is a collection of poems by Samuel Taylor Coleridge and William
Wordsworth. It was first published in 1798.

6. What is the Preface to Lyrical Ballads?

Ans: Preface to Lyrical Ballads is a preface that was prefixed with Lyrical Ballads by
Wordswoth and Coleridge. It is called the manifesto of Romantic Movement.

7. Why did Wordsworth write "Preface to Lyrical Ballads"?

Ans: Wordsworth wrote "Preface to Lyrical Ballads" at the request of his friends to give his
readers a briefing about the type of poems they would get in “Lyrical Ballads".

8. How does Wordsworth define poetry in the Preface to Lyrical Ballads?

Ans: Wordsworth in his Preface to Lyrical Ballads defines poetry as "the spontaneous
overflow of powerful feelings it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility."

26. Who is a poet? [NU 2017]

Ans: According to Wordsworth, a poet is a man speaking to men.

32. What are some of the characteristics of the poet?

Ans: Some of the characteristics of a poet, as stated by Wordsworth, are given below: 

i. A poet is a man speaking to men, 

ii. He is endowed with more lively sensibility, more enthusiasm and tenderness, 
iii. He has a greater knowledge of human nature, and 

iv. He has a more comprehensive soul.

28. How is the poet 'chiefly distinguished from other men?

Ans: The Poet is chiefly distinguished from other men by a greater promptness to think and
feel without immediate external excitement, and a greater power in expressing such thoughts
and feelings as are produced in him in that manner.

9. What kind of people are chosen by Wordsworth in ‘Lyrical Ballads’?

Ans: Humble and rustic people are chosen by Wordsworth in ‘Lyrical Ballads’.

10. What was the theme of Wordsworth's new poetry?

Ans: The theme of Wordsworth's new poetry was humble and rustic life.

11. Why does Wordsworth choose humble and rustic life?

Ans: Wordsworth chooses humble and rustic life because in that condition, "the essential
passions of the heart find a better soil in which they can attain their maturity….”.

12. What should be the subject matter of poetry according to Wordsworth?

Ans: According to Wordsworth, the subject matter of poetry should be the incidents and
situations from common life.  

13. Why did Wordsworth choose the language of the common man?

Ans: Wordsworth chose the language of the common man ‘because such men hourly
communicate with the best objects from which the best part of language is originally
derived’.

14. What is poetic diction?

Ans: Poetic diction is the term used to refer to the linguistic style, the vocabulary, and the
metaphors used in the writing of poetry.

15. What is meant by "metrical composition"?

Ans: "Metrical composition" means poem.

16. What is the main difference between a poet and a common man? [NU 2016]

Ans: The main difference between a poet and a common man, according to Wordsworth, is
not in nature, but in degree. A poet is a man who has greater sensibility, imagination,
knowledge of human nature, comprehensiveness, zest for life, and power of communication
than a common man.

17. What is ‘organic sensibility’?

Ans: ‘Organic sensibility’ means the capacity of a man to receive and internalize external
impressions through the senses. 

18. What is metre?

Ans: Metre is the basic rhythmic structure of a verse or lines in verse.

19. What purpose does metre serve in poetry?

Ans: Meatre serves the purpose of heightening and improving the pleasure of reading poetry.

20. What is personification?

Ans: Personification is the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to

something nonhuman, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.

21. Why does Wordsworth avoid the use of personification?

Ans: Wordsworth avoids the use of personification because it sometimes seems to be a

mechanical device to him.

22. What sort of truth does poetry give?

Ans: Poetry gives such truth that gives pleasure.

23. What is poetic truth?

Ans: Poetic truth is the universal element in human nature and in human life. It is much
higher than historical truth or philosophical truth.

24. What is "Celestial Ichor"?

Ans: According to classical mythology, “celestial ichor” is the fluid that runs through the
veins of gods.

25. What are the purposes of poetry according to Wordsworth?

Ans: According to Wordsworth, the purposes of poetry are to enlighten the readers and to
purify their affections.  

26. What is the difference between science and poetry?

Ans: One of the differences between science and poetry is that poetry accommodates
everybody but science accommodates a few. 

27. How is poetry superior to science?

Ans: According to Wordsworth, poetry is superior to science because the poet’s appeal is to
the intellect as well as to the heart of man, unlike the appeal of the scientist’s truth which
appeals to the intellect alone.
28. How is poetry compared to human heart?

Ans: Poetry is compared to human heart in respect of their immortality. Wordsworth says that
poetry is as immortal as the heart of man

Brief Biography of William Wordsworth

William Wordsworth was born in a raised in the scenic English Lake District, a rural
paradise. His love for nature most likely came about as a result of this upbringing.
Wordsworth attended St. John’s College, Cambridge University and took his degree without
distinction. He spent a year in France (November 1791 to December 1792) after completing
his studies and became an ardent supporter of the French Revolution. During this time, he fell
in love with a Frenchwoman, Annette Vallon, and fathered a daughter, Caroline, with her.
Lack of money forced him to return to England and war prevented him from rejoining his
lover and child. This, combined with his disillusionment with the Revolution, led
Wordsworth to the verge of an emotional breakdown. At this critical time, a friend died and
left Wordsworth enough money to live by writing poetry. In 1795, he moved to Dorsetshire
with his sister, Dorothy, befriended poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and began his own poetic
career at the age of 27. A short period of collaboration between Wordsworth and Coleridge
led to the publication of one of the most important books of the time: Lyrical Ballads. Over
the years, he grew increasingly prosperous and famous, but settled into a religious and
political conservatism that disappointed readers, like William Hazlitt, who once thought of
him as a promoter of democratic change. By 1843, Wordsworth was poet laureate of Great
Britain. He died in 1850 at the ripe age of eighty, and famed poet Alfred Lord Tennyson
succeeded him as poet laureate.

Historical Context of Preface to the Lyrical Ballads

Wordsworth wrote the “Preface to the Lyrical Ballads” during a time where England was
experiencing profound urbanization, industrialization, and movement towards mass media
and mass culture. In the essay, Wordsworth expresses fear that these factors can lead human
minds to become dull, and thus advocates a poetic revolution. At the same time, Wordsworth
is careful to say that poetry, though passionate, should still be the product of prior thought
and acquired skill. His disappointment with the French Revolution a decade prior to writing
the “Preface to the Lyrical Ballads” turned him away from the idea of thoughtless passion—
emotions ought to be recollected and processed “in tranquility” prior to being expressed.

Other Books Related to Preface to the Lyrical Ballads

“Preface to the Lyrical Ballads” is an introduction to Wordsworth’s poetry collection, Lyrical

Ballads, as well as a manifesto for the Romantic movement in England. In the process of
composing the essay, Wordsworth had frequent conversations with Wordsworth’s close
friend and fellow poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who also contributed a few poems of his
own to Lyrical Ballads. Coleridge is most well-known for his long poem The Rime of the
Ancient Mariner, but also penned shorter poems like “The Lime-Tree Bower My Prison.”
Some of the ideas in “Preface to the Lyrical Ballads” had antecedents in the late eighteenth
century, but on the whole, the preface is a rather revolutionary manifesto regarding about the
essence of poetry. The essay’s discussion of the valid language of poetry follows the lead of
chapters 14 and 17 of Coleridge’s Biographia Literaria—both Romantic poets attack the lofty
diction of the Neoclassical poets. In his essay, Wordsworth also criticizes contemporary
Gothic novels and German melodramas. For him, such nonimaginative and sensational
literature threatens the acuity of the human mind. William Wordsworth’s sister, Dorothy, was
also a Romantic poet and kept journals (The Grasmere Journal and The Alfoxden Journal)
detailing her daily life, which often included spending time with Coleridge and William in
nature.

Key Facts about Preface to the Lyrical Ballads

Full Title: Preface to the Lyrical Ballads

When Written: 1800-1802

Where Written: Grasmere, England

When Published: 1800 (2nd ed.), 1802 (3rd ed.)

Literary Period: Romantic

Genre: Essay, Manifesto

Antagonist: Late-Neoclassical writers

Point of View: First Person

Preface to the Lyrical Ballads Summary

Over the years, Wordsworth’s “Preface to the Lyrical Ballads” has come to be seen as a
manifesto for the Romantic movement in England. In it, Wordsworth explains why he wrote
his experimental ballads the way he did. Unlike the highbrow poetry of his contemporaries,
the late-Neoclassical writers, Wordsworth’s poems in Lyrical Ballads engage with the lives
of the peasantry and are written in stripped-down, common language.

Wordsworth was alone in his effort; he penned the Lyrical Ballads with the help of his good
friend, Samuel Taylor Coleridge. With friends like Coleridge, Wordsworth hopes to produce
a new class of poetry, which will focus on “low and rustic life”—Wordsworth finds that the
common people are less restrained and more honest because they are in constant communion
with the beauty of nature. This new class of poetry will also use the language of the common
people, as this language carries a certain universality and permanence, having none of the
fickleness of poetic diction.

Wordsworth feels that much of the poetry of his contemporaries is far too trivial and crude,
relying on sensationalism to appeal to readers. This sort of poetry—along with modern
industrialization and urbanization—dulls the minds of readers. To Wordsworth, good poetry
should have a purpose other than superficial entertainment. The purpose of Wordsworth’s
ballads is to allow cosmopolitan readers to vicariously experience nature so that they can be
revived from the mind-dulling aspects of modernity.

Wordsworth also sees great importance in emotions. Indeed, in poetry, emotions are more
important than the plot and actions—he writes that “all good poetry is the spontaneous
overflow of emotion” that “takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility.” It is
important that the poet recollects his emotions in tranquility, as taking this time to
contemplate the experience allows the poet to incorporate not only passion, but also profound
thought in their work. Poetry ought to be a profound experience. Wordsworth disdains the
trivialization of poetry: no matter how simple the meter of a poem, the contents of the poem
still ought to be taken seriously by poet and reader alike.

Other than these larger ideas about poetry, Wordsworth also briefly digresses into the
importance of meter. Wordsworth relates that he has chosen to write poetry and not prose
because meter adds a certain charm to the work. Furthermore, the regularity of meter can help
temper emotions that may grow to be too much if the work were written with the stylistic
freedom of prose. Wordsworth ends the “Preface to the Lyrical Ballads” on the note that there
is nothing more he can do except allow the reader to experience his ballads for themselves.

Summary

Analysis

Wordsworth explains that the first edition of Lyrical Ballads was published as a sort of

experiment to test the public reception of poems that use “the real language of men in a state
of vivid sensation.” The experiment was successful, better than Wordsworth was expecting,
and many were pleased with the poems.

Wordsworth initially considered his poems to be an experiment, suggesting that he wasn’t all
that confident that the public would receive them warmly. It would appear that as the first
edition of the Lyrical Ballads were well-received, Wordsworth should feel at ease. However,
a certain degree of uneasiness remains—Wordsworth still feels the need to explain his
experimental poetry in a preface.

Wordsworth acknowledges that his friend (Samuel Taylor Coleridge) supplied several poems
in the collection, including Rime of the Ancient Mariner. He then relates that he and his
friends wish to start a new type of poetry, poetry of the sort seen in Lyrical Ballads.
Wordsworth notes that he was initially unwilling to write the preface as some sort of systemic
defense of this new genre, because he doesn’t want to reason anyone into liking these poems.
He also says the motives behind starting this new genre of poetry are too complex to fully
articulate in so few words. Still, he has decided to furnish a preface: his poems are so
different from the poems of his age that they require at least a brief explanation as to their
conception.

Wordsworth was not alone in his endeavor to start a new type of poetry. From this, readers
can gather that multiple poets during Wordsworth’s era were dissatisfied with the trends of
contemporary poetry. Wordsworth’s disclaimer—that his reasons for starting a new genre of
poetry cannot be captured in the space of a preface—implies that the faults of late-
Neoclassical poetry are also complicated. From this, readers can gather that Wordsworth
lived in an era when things were growing increasingly complex with the onset of modernity.

Wordsworth claims that just as authors have a right to use certain ideas and techniques, they
also have a right to exclude other ideas and techniques. In every age, different styles of poetry
arise, and people expect different things from poetry. He goes on to cite many great yet
different poets of old, from Catullus Terence to Alexander Pope. Wordsworth wants to use
the preface to explain why he writes poetry the way he does, so that people don’t see his
nonconformity as laziness.

In drawing on many great yet disparate poets of old, Wordsworth implies that at different
times, different styles of poetry were considered great. In other words, each generation lives
in a different situation and thus naturally prefers a different style of poetry that somehow
aligns with or responds to the times. Thus, Wordsworth writes differently from his
contemporaries not because he is lazy, but because he senses that the changing times need a
new style of poetry to match.

Wordsworth relates that his principal goal in writing the poems in the Lyrical Ballads was to
portray common life in an interesting and honest way, and to appeal to readers’ emotions by
generating “a state of excitement.” He chose to depict common life because in that situation,
people are generally more self-aware and more honest. The feelings that arise in that
condition are simpler, more understandable, and more durable. Furthermore, the language of
the peasantry is pure, as common people are in constant communication with nature and far
away from “social vanity.”

Wordsworth’s decision to use common life and language in his poetry implies that upper-
class life and lofty language are insufficient for poetic expression. Throughout the preface,
Wordsworth seems to equate cosmopolitanism with corruption.

The language of the peasantry carries a certain permanence, unlike the lofty language of

the late-Neoclassical writers. The late-Neoclassical poets believe that the lofty poetry they
write bring them as well as poetry itself honor. However, Wordsworth perceives many things
to be wrong with these poets and their lofty language: “they separate themselves from the
sympathies of men, and indulge in arbitrary capricious habits of expression in order to furnish
food for fickle tastes and fickle appetites of their own creation.” To Wordsworth, these poets
are utterly unrelatable for the general literate masses.

Wordsworth’s criticism of the late-Neoclassical poets carries a harsh and disdainful tone.
Wordsworth accuses these poets of “[separating] themselves from the sympathies of men,” or
making themselves unrelatable to the masses—including their readers. Furthermore, they
constantly and randomly change the style of their poetry to suit their own ever-changing
tastes. Wordsworth views this sort of ignorance and inconstancy as self-serving.

On the other hand, Wordsworth states that triviality and lack of profound thought is a larger
problem than lofty language among his contemporary poets. He prides himself in the fact that
his poems actually have “a worthy purpose.” His poetry—like all good poetry—“is the
spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings.” Of course, it is also necessary that the poet
“thought long and deeply” prior to writing the poem. Wordsworth believes that if someone
continuously observes and contemplates their feelings, they will be enlightened, develop
better taste, and have their “affections ameliorated”; someone who processes their feelings
will become a better person. This process of observance and profound thought is necessary,
as the poet must have their “taste exalted”. The poet is, in a sense, elevated from their peers.

Wordsworth believes that poetry ought to be serious and profound—poems need to have a
purpose and cannot be intended purely for shallow entertainment. Emotions are, for
Wordsworth, a very serious and profound subject. At the same time, emotions cannot be
separated from thoughts, as the two are inextricably tied together. Thus, readers can infer that
good poetry should seriously deal with both emotions and thoughts. This sort of poetry will
help people become better people.

Wordsworth then declares the purpose of his poems: “to illustrate the manner in which our
feelings and ideas are associated under a state of excitement,” or, more specifically, “to
follow the fluxes and refluxes of the mind when agitated by the great and simple affections of
our nature.” The purpose of his poems is to depict the thoughts and feelings present during
certain emotional experiences. Wordsworth then cites a few of his ballads and relays how
those particular poems follow this purpose. He declares that “the feeling [developed in his
poems] gives importance to the action and situation, and not the action and situation to the
feeling.” He claims that readers will understand his statement better after reading two of his
ballads, “Poor Susan” and “Childless Father.”

Wordsworth’s goal is to connect thoughts and feelings—but it still seems that feelings are
more important to him, as he repeats again and again that good poetry hinges on emotional
experiences. Wordsworth’s obscure declaration about feelings, actions, and situations implies
that more than any occurrence, he values the emotions that accompanied that occurrence. In
other words, feelings are the most important aspect to any experience. Wordsworth’s lack of
explanation with regards to his declaration, and his direction of the reader to two of his
poems, suggests that he believes that poetry can convey certain ideas that can’t be expressed
any other way.
Wordsworth strongly believes that “the human mind is capable of excitement without the
application of gross and violent stimulants.” It is the writer’s job “to produce or enlarge this
capability,” especially during Wordsworth’s present day, as there are many modern forces
and “great national events” dulling human minds. Modernity leads humans to crave
sensationalism and instant gratification. This manifests in literary trends: people of
Wordsworth’s era crave the “frantic novels, sickly and stupid German tragedies, and deluges
of idle and extravagant stories in verse” of the late-Neoclassical writers rather than the
invaluable works of writers like Shakespeare and Milton. Wordsworth is disgusted with these
trends and their mind-dulling force, but still believes that given “certain inherent and
indestructible qualities of the human mind” and the power of nature, there is hope for revival.

The Industrial Revolution and its accompanying technological progress led people to crave
instant gratification, which, in turn, led writers to use sensationalism to cater to this craving.
Instead of bending to this trend, Wordsworth calls upon the reader’s sensibility so that they
can find appeal in the commonest of things. It is important to note that Wordsworth does not
disapprove of drama per se, as he considers Shakespeare and Milton—both are writers who
engage dramatic subjects—to be great writers; rather, he disapproves of drama for the sake of
drama. In order to counteract the excessive drama that his contemporaries employ,
Wordsworth intends to use nature to bring readers back to their senses.

Wordsworth turns to the subject of style. He notes that in the Lyrical Ballads, he avoids

personifying abstract ideas because he wants to use the language of the common man and
“keep [his] Reader in the company of flesh and blood.” Wordsworth also avoids what he calls
“poetic diction” in order to keep the language in his poetry as simple and as honest as
possible—he sees this as “good sense.” This avoidance prevents him from using from phrases
and figures of speech that are considered to be “the common inheritance of Poets,” but it also
prevents him from using phrases that have become vulgar from overuse by bad poets.

Wordsworth uses common language because it’s realistic, and, thus, relatable. He finds
abstract ideas to be distancing—it gives readers the sense that what they are reading about is
intangible and does not apply to real life. Wordsworth also expresses frustration that many
poetic phrases have become hackneyed from overuse and have lost their original meaning.

Wordsworth observes that there are many critics who disapprove of poems in which the
language, “according to the strict laws of metre, does not differ from that of prose.” However,
Wordsworth approves of these “prosaisms,” as they can be found in many great poems,
including those by the great poet Milton. He cites a sonnet by John Gray, “On the Death of
Richard West,” as an example of a poem whose most effective lines are written in a prosaic
style.

Here, Wordsworth demystifies poetry by suggesting that it many ways, it’s just prose written
in meter. From his perspective, there is no reason not to use “prosaisms,” especially if they
can convey profound thought and feeling. By citing Gray’s “On the Death of Richard West,”
Wordsworth demonstrates that sometimes, prosaic language can be much more effective than
poetic language in a poem.
Wordsworth reiterates that there is no essential difference between the language of poetry and
the language of prose. People often personify poetry and painting as sisters, but Wordsworth
thinks poetry and prose are even closer: “they both speak by and to the same organs […] their
affections are kindred and almost identical, not necessarily differing even in degree.” He
explains that poetry and prose are both altogether human: “Poetry sheds no tears ‘such as
Angels weep,’ but natural and human tears.” Likewise, poetry and prose both bleed real,
human blood; poetry “can boast of no celestial Ichor.”

Wordsworth’s personification of poetry is, considering what he said earlier about refraining
from personifying abstract ideas, quite ironic. However, through his beautiful use of poetic
language in this personification, Wordsworth demonstrates that he is perfectly capable of
writing in the lofty style used by his late-Neoclassical contemporaries. In the Lyrical Ballads,
he does not write in common language out of necessity, but out of choice. Furthermore,
poetry and prose are, in essence, the same. Poetry has no “celestial Ichor”—the substance that
flows through the veins of the Greek gods and goddesses—but only human blood, just like
prose.

Wordsworth realizes that some people may think  rhyme and meter distinguish poetry from
prose, but he thinks that this sort of “regular and uniform” distinction is different from that
between common language and poetic diction. In the latter case, the reader “is utterly at the
mercy of the Poet respecting what imagery or diction he may choose to connect with the
passion”; in the former case, both poet and reader submit to a certain form and there is no
interference. Why, then, has Wordsworth chosen to write poetry instead of prose? Simply
because he finds metrical language more charming. Furthermore, if meter restricts him,
Wordsworth has “the entire world of nature” to write about. To those who criticize
Wordsworth for using rhyme and meter but not poetic diction, he replies that readers have
read with pleasure poems with simpler language than the language in his ballads.

Wordsworth chooses to submit to the rules of meter because both poet and reader have to
adhere. In the case of common language versus poetic diction, the poet and reader would be
on level ground when it comes to the former, but the reader would be utterly subject to the
whims of the poet in the case of the latter. This is unfair to the reader and can make it
difficult for the reader to truly understand what the poet is trying to say. Also, Wordsworth
simply finds meter charming for aesthetic reasons. Even the simplest of things, when
conveyed in meter, carry a certain charm. Furthermore, he is so free in terms of choosing his
subject that the small restraint of meter appears to be nothing in comparison.

Wordsworth also sees a great benefit in using rhyme and meter: poems can excite painful
emotions, and the presence of something “regular” may help soften and restrain those painful
emotions “by an intertexture of ordinary feeling.” This is why people feel they can reread the
tragic parts of Shakespeare, but not of Clarissa Harlowe or of James Shirley: Shakespeare
tempers his work with rhyme and meter, so that in the end, his works still gives more
pleasure than pain. Furthermore, readers generally associate certain types of meter with
certain emotions. The poet can use these associations to his or her advantage and affect
certain emotions, especially if the poet’s diction is insufficiently evocative.
Wordsworth realizes that the subject of his poetry can be overwhelming and may be difficult
for the reader to deal with; thus, his use of rhyme and meter will give the reader a sense of
familiarity that will make the overwhelming sense of foreignness more bearable. From this,
readers can gather that Wordsworth does not believe any negative emotion should be the
chief emotion a reader experiences when reading poetry. The main emotion that readers
experience should always be positive and pleasurable.

Wordsworth remarks that if the “Preface to the Lyrical Ballads” were a sort of systemic
defense for his poetic theory, then he would need to go through all the ways that metrical
language can lead to pleasure. As the preface is not intended to be such a thorough defense,
he will simply say that one of the chief pleasures of metrical language is “the pleasure which
the mind derives from the perception of similitude in dissimilitude.” Wordsworth briefly
elaborates, saying that “this principle is the great spring of the activity of our minds and their
chief feeder,” before claiming that the limits of the preface prohibits him from speaking more
on the subject, and “[he] must content [himself] with a general summary.”

Wordsworth’s occasional nonsensicality—as exemplified by his vague statement addressing

“the perception of similitude in dissimilitude”—marks one of the major flaws that critics find
with the “Preface to the Lyrical Ballads.” Some traditions of literary criticism hold that
Wordsworth’s critical writings are mostly nonsensical, and where they do make sense is
where Coleridge helped him. In general, Wordsworth seems to dismiss any nonsensical
declaration with the claim that it is too long to explain, as seen here.

Wordsworth proceeds to explain the process of poetic creation. The poet must first recall
their emotions in “tranquility” and contemplate those emotions in peace until they dissolve
away and a new, kindred emotion comes into place. Then the poet can begin the composition
process, and the poet will feel pleasure. The poet must always be careful that readers of their
poem will feel more pleasure than the deeper passions that the poem addresses. People tend
to read poetry, and not prose, over and over again because of this pleasure. Wordsworth cites
Alexander Pope as an example of a poet who produces pleasurable poems from “the plainest
common sense.” Poetry can be a vehicle to convey truth in a pleasurable way.

Wordsworth doesn’t think poets should write in the heat of an emotional moment, as the poet
may be confused about what they are really feeling. They must first contemplate their
emotion in peace to achieve a proper understanding of what they felt before engaging in the
writing process. Poetry written in the heat of the moment may be too overwhelming for the
reader. In this way, Wordsworth reiterates the idea that it is important not to overwhelm the
reader—reading poetry must be a pleasurable experience.

Wordsworth addresses possible faults of his ballads: he may have written on an unworthy

subject, and he may have made arbitrary connections between things that no one would
understand except himself. He is not sure yet which of his expressions are faulty; thus, he
refrains from correcting anything. Wordsworth believes that a poet who corrects his own
work too often could easily lose his or her confidence. Furthermore, the imperfect reader may
also perceive certain poems as faulty when they are actually fine.
Wordsworth’s uneasiness with regards to the reception of his ballads manifests once again.
He admits that some of his ballads may have faults, but at the same time, he makes it
impossible for the reader to accuse his poetry of many faults by saying that the reader, too,
has faults.

There is one fault that Wordsworth assures readers they will never find in his poetry: the fault
of writing about a trivializing poetry. Samuel Johnson’s poem “I put my hat upon my head,”
lampooning the basic ballad meter, exemplifies this fault. Wordsworth terms this lampoon “a
mode of false criticism”: ballad meter is intended to be simple, but that doesn’t mean it
cannot be a medium for serious subjects. Wordsworth then cites a stanza from another poem
by Johnson, “The Babes in the Wood,” to show an example of simple meter communicating a
worthy subject. Through quoting and analyzing these two poems by Johnson, Wordsworth
shows that it is the subject, not the meter, of a poem that decides whether it is trivial.

Overall, Wordsworth takes poetry, as well as prefaces to poetic works, very seriously—
poetry must be written after a serious emotional experience, after serious contemplation, and
in a serious manner. Even poetry written in simple ballad meter ought not to be lampooned,
or satirized. Wordsworth considers this sort of satire a wrongful way to engage in criticism. If
one is to criticize poetry, one must do so in a serious, thoughtful manner.

Wordsworth asks readers to form their own feelings and opinions, and not go by what others
think, when judging his poetry. Wordsworth also tells readers that if they thought one poem
was good and others were bad, they should go back and review those they thought were bad.
Reading and judging poetry is an acquired talent, and a review would only be just to the poet.
Wordsworth doesn’t want readers to make quick judgments about his poetry, as such
judgments are often wrong.

Wordsworth’s uneasiness and insecurities bubble up to the surface once again—he is anxious
that readers should like his poetry. If they don’t enjoy his ballads the first time around, he
declares, then they ought to read it a second time. To some readers, it may seem that
Wordsworth is making excuses for himself: as judging poetry is an acquired talent, readers
who dislike his poetry may simply not be experienced enough.

Wordsworth declares that there is nothing more he can do but let the reader read his ballads
and experience the pleasure they offer firsthand. He realizes that asking readers to try his
experimental ballads means that they must “give up much of what [they] ordinarily enjoy” in
poetry. Wordsworth wants to show that his poetry is better and offers pleasure “of a purer,
more lasting, and more exquisite nature.” It is not his intention to denounce other forms of
poetry; rather, Wordsworth wishes to promote a new genre of poetry that he feels will help
keep humans human. He awaits to hear from readers whether they think he has achieved his
purpose, and whether that purpose was worth achieving.

Overall, Wordsworth still believes in the worthiness of his own poems: he sees them as a
permanent source of pleasure in world that is ever-changing. Wordsworth also sees his poems
in Lyrical Ballads as extraordinarily unique, not having much in common with the poems that
readers usually enjoy. Still, as his poetry is so revolutionary and different from all other
poetry, Wordsworth remains somewhat afraid of criticism from the masses. His appeal for a
judgment from the reader demonstrates that he is still anxious for public approval.

SUMMARY: “PREFACE TO LYRICAL BALLADS”

“Preface to Lyrical Ballads” is an essay by the English Romantic poet William Wordsworth.
In 1798 Wordsworth wrote, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the poetry collection Lyrical
Ballads. Believing that the poems were so novel in theme and style that they required some
explanation, Wordsworth wrote a prefatory essay to accompany the second edition of the
poems in 1800; he then expanded the essay for the third edition of 1802.

The “Preface” is often considered a manifesto of the Romantic movement in English

literature. Wordsworth explains his intention in his poems to express incidents from everyday
life in everyday language and imbued with poetic sentiment. He defines poetry as a
“spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings” (13) and the poet as “a man speaking to men”
(8). Because poetry speaks of universal human emotions, it should use diction that is natural
rather than artificial and self-consciously literary. Thus, Wordsworth sets himself apart from
classicist poets who addressed an elite audience in language that was tied to formal rules.
Wordsworth argues that poetry and prose should be close in style and that the aim of poetry
should be to imitate nature and inspire emotion in the reader in a way that emphasizes
pleasure. In the final part of the essay, Wordsworth outlines the procedure whereby a poet
may observe the world around them and compose poetry through deep reflection on their
experiences.

William Wordsworth’s “Lyrical Ballads” which was penned in association with S.T

Coleridge turned out to be a milestone work in the history of English literature. In
his “Preface to Lyrical Ballads” Wordsworth propounds his concept of poetry, the subject and
theme of poetry, the purpose and function of poetry, and the language fitted for poetry.
Wordsworth’s ideas have changed the outlook of English literature in the 19th century and
also announced the romantic period in the true sense.

Table of Contents

Wordsworth’s definition of poetry:

Poetic process:

The aim and function of poetry:

The subject matter of poetry:

Wordsworth’s use of common-man’s language

Wordsworth’s concept of a poet:

Conclusion:

Wordsworth’s definition of poetry:

The definition that Wordsworth put forward in 1802 is crucial, he says: “Poetry is the
spontaneous overflow of powerful feeling, it takes its origin from emotion recollected in
tranquility…” (William Wordsworth, Preface to Lyrical Ballads). From Wordsworth’s
definition of poetry, it is comprehensible that poetry is a subject of imagination and
motivation. Poetry develops from the passion and emotion of the poet. Poetry’s starting point
is the emotions in the heart, not the reason of intellect. The foundational aspects of poetry are
passion and emotion. Without these fundamental aspects, good poetry cannot be composed.
The insistence on imagination, feeling, passion, and emotion is an explicit withdrawal from
the neoclassical emphasis on “reason” and “objectivity”. 

Poetic process:

According to Wordsworth, four stages are needed to complete a poetic process:

Recollection

Contemplation

Renewal of the original emotion, and 

Composition

At the outset, the poet observes certain things, characters, or circumstances. It creates forceful

feelings and emotions in the poet’s mind. Then he lets these emotions bog down together
with the sensation which it has stirred. After this, in the second stage, there will be
recollection or remembrance of those emotions and sensations in tranquility and
contemplated upon. There might be a gap of many years between the initial or primary sense
of emotions and the contemplation of it. The emotions of the first phase hang in the mind of
the poet until the unwanted emotions, which were random and secondary, precipitated. After
contemplation, the initial or primary emotions and sensations get purified and filtered and
what is left is considered as universal and all-important truth. The primary or initial
impression has now been got rid of unneeded material. At this stage, memory plays a crucial
role. This whole procedure works very slowly but it is only by way of such a procedure of
“purification” that the personal feelings are reformed into the universal.

The emotions that are left after contemplation are different from the emotions that a poet
received in the first stage. The word that Wordsworth emphasizes here is “kindred”.
Wordsworth said that the emotions which are generated at the beginning and the emotions
that are created after contemplation are both related but not identical because there is a
filtration or purification of emotions. Therefore, at this moment of creation, ‘tranquility’ is no
more there. It has been substituted by emotional excitement.  The creative process at this
stage carries with it pleasure, indeed “an overbalance of pleasure” as Wordsworth puts it. In
this process of creativity, the mind is, altogether, in a state of pleasure and delight. The job of
the poet is to share this pleasure and delight with his readers to communicate at an elevated
level than other men. 

The aim and function of poetry:

Wordsworth says that the purpose of poetry is to convey pleasure. But this pleasure is not
superficial, trivial enjoyment that we get, for example, by watching rope dancing. Instead
Wordsworth wished that with his poetry, he would be able to “console the afflicted”. The
pleasure of poetry elevates and edifies readers.

The subject matter of poetry:

William Wordsworth states that his content has been events and circumstances from daily
life. And he has associated them with a language really used by common man,
simultaneously casting over them a shade of imagination. Wordsworth provides certain
objectives for his choice of subject matter from common and rural life.

Human emotions and passions mature well in rustic and rural life. 

The elementary emotions and feelings of the human heart correspond in a state of
significant simplicity in the rustic and common situations of life. 

In common and rural conditions of life, human emotions are contained with the pleasing and
lasting shape of nature i.e., outer nature, and therefore the emotions are elevated
and lasting than those of polished and aristocratic people of cities. 

The attitude and behavior of the rustic people develop from those of elementary passions and
feelings, which are more simply comprehensible and more permanent. 

In short, Wordsworth’s explanation is that in the rustic and common situations of life “the
elementary feelings” from an alliance with nature are unsophisticated, easy to comprehend,
and simple.  

Wordsworth’s use of common-man’s language

Wordsworth had used the common people’s language after filtering it of rough expressions,
out-of-order syntax, and other flaws. Wordsworth has favored the common man
language because common people live together and are always in contact with nature from
which the greatest and the best portion of human language originally evolved. In addition,
because the humble and rural people have a very low probability of connecting with cities,
rustic people do not have a vanity in their language. They convey their sentiment and
emotions by way of easy, uncomplicated, and basic expressions. Thus, their language is more
intense, more authentic, and more vigorous. 

Wordsworth’s concept of a poet:

Wordsworth says that a poet should be a “man speaking to men”. The poet’s foremost
purpose should be communication. A poet should not write for his own fulfillment and
delight but should share his ideas and emotions with his readers. Wordsworth says that the
poet is distinct from common living persons not in kind, but in the standard and degree to
which he owns certain qualities.

A poet is a person who has a higher sensibility in contrast to common human beings. A more
active sensibility assists him to respond more firmly to outer impressions. Accordingly, his
emotions and feelings are more passionate. 

The imaginative power of a poet is greatly higher than that of other ordinary human beings. It
allows him to expand his range of emotions. He can experience and react to those feelings
that he has not personally confronted.

The poet possesses a more comprehensive soul compared to other common living persons.

He portrays the passions and feelings of other human beings sharply. 

The poet, thus, has the gifts of imagination, sensibility, fancy, observation, and judgment.
Later William Wordsworth included that a poet should also acquire sincerity as well. By
sincerity, Wordsworth intended that the poet should labor hard to revise his poem so as to
obtain artistic simplicity and coherence. He should take pains to convey himself in
unequivocal terms. Therefore, we can say that Wordsworth was not completely unsighted to
the necessity of artistic finish. 

Conclusion:

Wordsworth himself applied his own concept of poetic composition to write poetry.
Wordsworth never wrote poetry immediately after he came across any sensation or situation.
He used to give time to his sensations to bog down his mind, and as he asserts in his theory
Wordsworth contemplates those emotions later in tranquility and composes poems. His well-
known poems “The Tintern Abbey,” “The Solitary Reaper,” “The Daffodils” were written
according to his theory of poetic composition.

Preface to the Lyrical Ballads Analysis by Wordsworth

Table of Contents

Introduction

Historical Background

Europe

Main Ideas in Preface to Lyrical Ballads

What inspires poetry?

Who is a poet?
What is a poem?

What is the language in which a poem should be written?

The Egotistical Sublime

Introduction

Preface to the Lyrical Ballads, written by William Wordsworth, is a landmark essay in

the history of English Literature. Considered to be the Romantic Manifesto on poetry and
society, the Preface is a work that is crucial to our understanding of the progress of the
Romantic literary thought, originating in 18th century Europe, which has been immortalized
in our view of poetry and how we think of it today.

Historical Background

The Preface to the Lyrical Ballads first appeared in the 2nd edition of the poetry
collection Lyrical Ballads (1801) and later expanded in the 3rd edition (1802). It would be
helpful for us to first familiarize ourselves with this historical context of 18th century

Europe

i.) Massive industrialization and urbanization – During this period, London became the urban
centre of industrial development and huge masses of people migrated to the cities in search of
jobs.

ii.) The Backdrop of the Neoclassicals – Neoclassical works were known for their adherence
to rules and regulations of satire and their strict definitions of what is poetry. Their language
was far from what people used in daily conversations and they spoke of extraordinary
subjects. Neoclassicism was followed by Romanticism.

iii.) Rise of Romanticism – Romanticism is different from romanticism (notice the capital ‘R’
vs. the lower-case ‘r’) Romanticism was a movement which sought to break away from old
norms and beliefs by revolutionizing the way people thought about society in 18th century
Europe.

Inspired by the ideals of the French Revolution – to shake up the foundations of old
hierarchical structures – and distressed by the rise of the choking city life, the Romantic
Wordsworth set out to challenge old notions regarding poetry.

Main Ideas in Preface to Lyrical Ballads

Wordsworth’s relation to Nature/Countryside Wordsworth is celebrated as the nature poet

because of his beautiful descriptions of nature and rural/countryside areas. However, to
reduce his work to just an imitation of trees and flowers would be immature.

Wordsworth admired nature/countryside not only because it looked beautiful, but because of
the simplicity and beauty that nature/countryside provided allowed people to be in touch with
their soul and experience true beauty in life. Wordsworth believed that the city life made the
masses dull and stagnant – it had reduced them to overworked machines who failed to
appreciate the simple beauty of life. He called this state of mental stagnancy as savage torpor.

What inspires poetry?

Tired of the highly elevated topics of neoclassical poets and their over-complicated language,
Wordsworth wanted “to make the ordinary extraordinary”. Wordsworth found inspiration
from everyday figures of everyday life. Whether it be the famous Solitary Reaper or the
Daffodils – Wordsworth’s poetry flows to admire the simple beauty that exists in daily life.

Who is a poet?

For Wordsworth, a poet is simply “a man speaking to men” – a fellow human just like all of
us trying to communicate his perception and experience of truth and beauty. However, the
poet differs from regular people because of his higher sensitivity to the happenings around
him and a deeper connection with his own feelings, moods and emotions as they arise in
response to these outer happenings.

What is a poem?

Wordsworth famously defined poetry as “a spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings which
are recollected in tranquillity”. Simply speaking, the highly sensitive poet is able to
experience the beauty of ordinary life, capture his own emotions as they arise and is finally
able to sit in a calm, peaceful space to use his imagination to recollect these emotions and
finally write about them.

What is the language in which a poem should be written?

Wordsworth believed that the “real language of men” – ordinary daily language – should be
used to write poetry. However, Wordsworth refined this common language to a purer form
without losing the essence of its simplicity.

The Egotistical Sublime

The Egotistical Sublime is a concept which simply means that a poet’s own subjective view
of truth and beauty is extremely attached to his work. The poems they produce are filled with
their own imagination and perspective on how they perceive things around them.
Wordsworth’s works are often said to be examples of the Egotistical Sublime since his own
experience of things is what he believes to be everyone’s experience of things.

In Conclusion, it’ll be safe to say those modern-day poets who hold ideas like self-expression
and sensitivity so dear to their hearts truly owe it to Wordsworth’s works to reinforce ideas so
simple yet so revolutionary.