WILLIAM WORDSWORTH (1770 - 1850)

lingue

WILLIAM WORDSWORTH (1770 - 1850)

Tintern Abbey: yet from the title we can understand that the poet deals with his personal experience, that is a journery near the banks of the river Why and the effects of the natural on his soul. Its line is the jambic pentameter, the language is very simple and there is a colloqial tone. The poem can be divided into four seq 353g66d uences: 1^st description of the landscape as it appears not to Wordsworth's real eyes, but to his internal eyes throu the use of memory and imagination and he underlines that he doesn't visit that place since five years. 2^nd the memory of the beautiful landscape produced three effects on him: it has a calming function in contrapposition to the din of urban life (he criticizes civilization) - it makes the poet able to alleviate his sorrow, giving him a tranquil restoration - it endowed the poet with the faculty to see into the life of things, so that he becomes a living soul and he feels one with the universe and close to God. Nature is a link between man and God. Thus nature is a form of consolation for modern man, and the poet, who for his superior sensibility is able to feel the contact with nature, has a role of prophet for all the humanity. In this importance gived to nature, Wordsworth follows the theory of Rousseau of the good savage. 3^rd The poet describes his relation to nature during his childhood, youth and adulthood. In the first period he enjoied himself with the pleasures of a physical contact with nature - in the second from his contact to nature he reach dizzy raptures and aching joys - in the third period he feels close to the rest of mankid, he recognize the existence of the invisible force, that permeates all nature and so he considers nature as a nurse, a guide. 4^th He is speaking to Dorothy and he uses the same adjectives both for nature and for his sister, and he asserts that although many years of absence that landscape is more dear to him both for its beauty and for the love for his sister.

PREFACE TO LYRICAL BALLADS: he defines poetry as the spontaneous overflow feelings and it takes origin from emotion recollected in tranquillity. Role of poet: the poet is a man like other men, but endowed with a higher  sensibility, so he is able to recognize the spirit of things. Language: the language should be that spoken by men, even if purified of any disgusting expression. So he criticizes his contemporary poets, because they uses a difficult language in order to reach honour. Object of poetry: should be the humble and rustic life and the simple and poor people for their contact with nature. Imagination: it has an important role in Wordsworth for his capacity of colouring events and to perceive things invisible to an ordinary mind. Nature: nature isn't only a simple background, but it is endowed with spirit. So he has a pantheistic view of nature, because for him everything reflects God's presence in the world.

SONET composed upon Westminster Bridge: it is quite different from the other poems because in this he doesn't describe a natural landscape, but a city built by man. It can be explained by the fact that he doesn't consider the buildings of the city, but the nature which can be seen from the bridge, so there is a fusion between natural and human environment.