WILLIAM WORDSWORTH

            William Wordsworth belongs to the period that witnessed a Romantic revolt against the Neo-classical movement. Wordsworth himself was highly influenced by the spirit of the French Revolution and the writing of Rousseau who challenged everything that interfered with the natural right and liberty of man.

            Wordsworth’s contribution to literary criticism lies chiefly in his preface to the second edition of the Lyrical Ballads published by him and his friend Coleridge first in 1798. Wordsworth in his preface discusses the question of poetic diction or the language fit for poetry which had been the topic of heated discussion among the neo-classical and earlier writers. The neo-classical writers rejected low words and phrases as unfit for poetic use. Dr. Johnson added to his list the use of technical words. To the neo classical writers, the diction of poetry differed from that of prose by its happy combination of words or figures of speech.

            Wordsworth recommended the use of a simpler diction. In the Preface of the Lyrical Ballads, he says that his principal object in these poems is to choose incidents and situations from common life and to relate or describe them, throughout as far as possible in a selection of language really used by men and at the same time, to throw over them a certain colouring of imagination in order to present even, ordinary things in an unusual aspect. He rejected the personification of abstract ideas. He also ruled out any distinction between the language of poetry and that of prose. But later, he contra dicted himself stating that the selection of the language spoken by men must be made with true taste and feeling. He also admitted the possibility of what Johnson called ‘flowers of speech’ arising in the process. All these features along with metre definitely make the language of poetry different from that of prose. In this context, Rene Wellek says: ‘Wordsworth, actually ends in good neoclassicism!’.

            The second part of his preface contains the concept of poetry. To begin with, he defines poetry as ‘the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings’. But as such spontaneity gives no room for the selection of language really used by men. He modifies the definition saying that the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings should take its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility. In this process the emotion originally aroused by the sight was recreated in contemplation. This emotion then empowers the mind driving away contemplation and the result in poetry. But by spontaneity in poetry, Wordsworth did not mean a total rejection of workmanship.

            To Wordsworth, the poet is a man speaking to men. So poetry should have a definite purpose apart from delighting the reader. Poetry is the pursuit of truth of man’s knowledge of himself and the world around him. Scientific truth benefits us materially whereas the poetic truth becomes part of our existence. The poetic truths are felt in the blood and felt along the heart. So Wordsworth says, ‘Poetry is the breath and finer spirit of all knowledge; it is the impassioned expression which is in the countenance of all science’. Poetry, according to Wordsworth is a great force for good. Wordsworth wished to be considered only as a teacher. To him, every great poet is a teacher. Like Plato, he also wanted poetry to teach. But at the same time he insisted on pleasure as being an essential condition of poetic teaching. Man, by nature, is a bundle of contradictions. Wordsworth as a critic is doubly so.

c � o i H�f �% he language of poetry. He says that ‘a simile to be perfect must both illustrate and ennoble the subject’.

On Drama:

            Johnson considers the different aspects of the dramatic art: its nature, the unities, dramatic pleasure and the tragic - comedy. Drama must hold up ‘a faithful mirror of manners and of life’. It should present ‘human sentiments in human language’. A great play is not a story of a few men in one particular age, but through them, of all men in all ages: the actions, thoughts and passions.

            Among the three unities, Johnson says that only the unity of action is justified by reason, the union of the events of the plot into an inseparable whole. He accounts for the pleasure in drama as the natural human pleasure in imitation. He follows a very realistic approach on the tragic - comedy. There are two natural grounds to justify it:  the alternation of pleasure and pain in a play pleases by its variety and  it reflects life.

Practical Criticism:

            Johnson is the first English critic to attempt a systematic work in the field of practical criticism. His “Lives of the Poets” is a biographical - cum - critical account of fifty two poets from Cowley to Gray covering a period of a hundred years. It is as much a history of the English poetry of this period as a work of criticism.

The Value of his Criticism:

            Johnson is the last great critic of the neo - classical school. He has a code of conduct both for the writer and the critic. In his historical approach to an author’s work he questions the validity of the same rules for all ages. He pleads for suitable adjustments  in them in the light of the author’s environment. His other test of excellence – ‘the general and continued approbation of mankind’ (which he applies to Shakespeare) also disposes of the necessity of rules.

            Neo – Classicism stresses the means – the rules, as they are called – no less than the end. Johnson’s test stresses the end only.