William Wordsworth (Magill Book Reviews)
At a glance:
- Author: Stephen Gill
- First Published: 1989
- Type of Work: Biography
- Genres: Nonfiction, Biography
- Subjects: Maturation or coming of age, Traveling or travelers, France or French people, Class consciousness, Poetry or poets, Violence, Great Britain, Industrialization
- Locales: France, Germany, Italy, Great Britain, Switzerland, Belgium
Wordsworth’s poetry itself is heavily identified with autobiographical intention. His greatest poem, THE PRELUDE, OR THE GROWTH OF THE POET’S MIND, was written in three different versions (1799, 1805, 1836) but did not see publication until after the poet’s death in 1850. Wordsworth did not misrepresent essentials, but he often sacrificed the literal facts about people and experiences to the aesthetic requirements of his poem. Biographical accuracy demands a reassessment of Wordsworth’s recollections and allusions.
Throughout his life Wordsworth was known as a “recluse,” a visionary leading a very private existence removed from the turmoil of society. Gill questions this image of the poet’s life by demonstrating Wordsworth’s concern over the state of his own reputation and the reception of his poems. He issued numerous editions of his work. He kept in touch with important intellectual movements. He was not a hermit-bard.
Finally, Gill takes considerable pains to clarify the situation of Wordsworth’s later years. Although his poetic powers declined, his later work was received with interest as his earlier work gained in reputation. He became a poet of increasing importance to the national and literary culture. George Eliot, Matthew Arnold, and other major Victorians were heavily influenced by his work and thought.
Sources for Further Study
Chicago Tribune. July 16, 1989, XIV, p.6.
Kirkus Reviews. LVII, April 1, 1989, p.519.
Library Journal. CXIV, April 1, 1989, p.89.
London Review of Rooks. XI, April 20, 1989, p.17.
Los Angeles Times Rook Review. August 20, 1989, p.2.
New Statesman and Society. II, March 17, 1989, p.37.
The New York Review of Rooks. XXXVI, December 21, 1989, p.45.
The New York Times Rook Review. XCIV, June II, 1989, p.49.
The Observer. March 19, 1989, p.49.
Publishers Weekly CCXXXV, April 21, 1989, p.75.
The Times Literary Supplement. May 5, 1989, p.475.
The Wall Street Journal. July 25, 1989, p. A14.
The Washington Post Rook World. XIX, May 28, 1989, p.1.
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