Preface To Lyrical Ballads

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Preface to Lyrical Ballads
 One of the greatest poets of England.

 Primarily a poet, not a critic
 Under the powerful influence of French Revolution, a reaction set against the Augustan
tradition
 A new era dawned in the history of English Criticism with the publication of Preface to
Lyrical Ballads
 Preface to Lyrical Ballads – as a manifesto for the Romantic movement in England.
 “New Experiment” made by him in the Lyrical Ballad (1978)
 “Systematic defence of the theory” upon which the poems were written.
 The idea was to demolish the conventional taste and then to build the new concept of
romantic faith.
 His experimental ballads against the ‘Highbrow poetry’ of his contemporaries, the late-
Neoclassical writers.
 Wordsworth’s poems in Lyrical Ballads engage Neoclassicism is the movement
with the lives of the Peasantry and are written
in the history of English
down in common language.
literature, which laid immense
 Reception of poems that use the real language of
emphasis on revival of the
men in a state of vivid sensation. The experiment
classical spirit during the
was successful better than Wordsworth was
expecting, and many were pleased with the period between 1680 and 1750
poems. in the age of Pope and Dryden.
It is a prototype of Classicism
Principal Goal:
• to portray common life in an interesting and
honest way
• to appeal to readers’ emotions by generating “a state of excitement.”
• 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.
• the language of the peasantry is pure, as common people are in constant communication

with nature
• 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 meant for honour.
• lofty language: “they separate themselves from the sympathies of men, and indulge in
arbitrary capricious (impulsive) habits of expression in order to furnish food for fickle
(inconsistent) tastes and fickle appetites of their own creation.”
• To Wordsworth, these poets are utterly unrelatable for the general literate masses.
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• Wordsworth believes that poetry ought to be serious and profound—poems need to have a
purpose and cannot be intended purely for shallow entertainment.
• According to Wordsworth, Emotions are a very serious and profound subject. Emotions
cannot be separated from thoughts, as the two are inextricably tied together.
• 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.
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 “poetic diction” in order to keep the language in his poetry as
simple and as honest as possible—he sees this as “good
sense.” Traits of Classicism
According to Wordsworth, there is no difference between good personification,
prose and verse. allegory,
• When the line in a poem is naturally arranged and according intellectual element,
to the strict laws of metre, it does not differ from that of a artificial loftiness of
good prose. diction and style
• There are innumerable passages from great poets like John

Milton, Thomas Gray and others to show that the language
of their poem does in no respect differ from that of good
prose.
Functions of Poetry:
Thomas Gray
 Good poetry as the spontaneous overflow of The greatest poet between Milton and
powerful feelings recollected at tranquility. Wordsworth.
 a poet is a man speaking to men A transitional poet because in his poetry the
 the poet is endowed with more lively traits of both Classicism and Romanticism are
sensibility, more enthusiasm, and tenderness found.
and who has greater knowledge of human Began his career as a classicist.
nature and a more comprehensive soul. Followed the rules of the ancient masters.
“Here rests his head upon the lap of Earth,
Process of Poetic Composition A youth to fortune and to fame unknown.”
There are four stages which play a very crucial role in - the epitaph on his grave
converting an experience into a pleasing composition.
Stage One: Observation: First comes observation or perception of some object, character or incident
which sets up powerful emotions in the mind of the poet.
Stage Two: Recollection: Next comes the contemplation or recollection of that emotion in
tranquillity. It must be noted that at this stage memory comes into play and brings out what had
been lying in the unconscious for days, months or years. A similar kind of incident triggers the poet
to visit the past experiences stored in the unexplored regions of his mind.
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Stage Three: Filtering: The third stage is that of filtering wherein the poet is purged of non-essential
elements and thus makes his experience communicable to all men.
Stage Four: Composition: The fourth stage is when the actual composition begins. The poet seeks to
convey his emotions through print and turns into a communicator. In the words of Wordsworth, he
becomes a man speaking to men. What is important to him is not just expressing his joy but sharing
it with his readers.
The Solitary Reaper by Wordsworth demonstrates this poetic process.
Behold her, single in the field,

Yon solitary Highland Lass!
Reaping and singing by herself;
Stop here, or gently pass!
Alone she cuts and binds the grain,
And sings a melancholy strain;
O listen! for the Vale profound
Is overflowing with the sound.
No Nightingale did ever chaunt

More welcome notes to weary bands
Of travellers in some shady haunt,
Among Arabian sands:
A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard
In spring-time from the Cuckoo-bird,
Breaking the silence of the seas
Among the farthest Hebrides.
Will no one tell me what she sings? --

Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow
For old, unhappy, far-off things,
And battles long ago:
Or is it some more humble lay,
Familiar matter of to-day?
Some natural sorrow, loss, or pain,
That has been, and may be again?
Whate'er the theme, the Maiden sang

As if her song could have no ending;
I saw her singing at her work,
And o'er the sickle bending; --
I listened, motionless and still;
And, as I mounted up the hill,
The music in my heart I bore,
Long after it was heard no more.
The Solitary Reaper, William Wordsworth
Feelings started overflowing spontaneously as the poet listened to the song of the Highland girl: “the
Vale profound / Is overflowing with the sound.” Removed from the scene he started recollecting his
experiences in tranquillity and exhuming (disinteresting) theme of the song and causes its
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joyousness. Slowly but gradually this state of mind disappears, and an emotion which is quite similar
to the original is generated. It soon turns into feeling and starts resonating and he begins composing
his poem with “the music” he feels in his heart “Long after it was heard no more” causes its
joyousness.
Mimesis is a term used in philosophy and literary criticism. It describes the process of imitation or
mimicry through which artists portray and interpret the world. Mimesis is not a literary device or
technique, but rather a way of thinking about a work of art.
The word “mimesis” is derived from the Ancient Greek word meaning “imitation” or
“representation”.
They enable readers and listeners to suspend their disbelief, identify with characters, and get deeply
immersed in a text.
There are two types of mimesis within poetry:
1. Vocal mimesis, or writing in a particular accent or speech pattern that is appropriate for the
character.
2. Behavioural mimesis, in which where characters respond to scenarios in understandable
ways.
In practice, mimetic critical theory often asks how well the literary work conveys universal truths and
teaches the reader positive moral values and modes of personal conduct.
According to Plato, Art is an imitation of life. Art requires imagination to create some of the best
paintings, without imagination creativity would not be possible.
Aristotle also defenses the theory of Plato.
The primary focus of mimetic criticism is to show that there is a part of reality that is seen from the
perosn who wrote the literature. Throughout the content, is showing the readers either the true or
the harshness of the reality which they are a part of in their particular time period.
Example: Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein “"I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel."

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Preface to Lyrical Ballads

 One of the greatest poets of England.

• to portray common life in an interesting and

• to appeal to readers’ emotions by generating “a state of excitement.”

• the language of the peasantry is pure, as common people are in constant communication

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

• There are innumerable passages from great poets like John

The Solitary Reaper by Wordsworth demonstrates this poetic process.

Behold her, single in the field,

No Nightingale did ever chaunt

Will no one tell me what she sings? --

Whate'er the theme, the Maiden sang

There are two types of mimesis within poetry:

Aristotle also defenses the theory of Plato.

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