William Wordsworth, a towering figure in English Romantic poetry, reshaped the literary landscape of his era. With his innovative works, Wordsworth explored the profound connections between the human mind and the natural world. His poetry remains a testament to the power of imagination and emotional depth.

Early Life

Born on April 7, 1770, in Cockermouth, on the edge of England's picturesque Lake District, William Wordsworth was the second child among five siblings in John and Ann Wordsworth’s family. Tragedy struck early in his life with the death of his mother when he was merely eight years old, followed by his father’s passing soon after. At nine, Wordsworth was sent to Hawkshead Grammar School by Esthwaite Lake, where he developed a deep love for the Lakeland scenery, a passion that would later echo through his poetry, notably in The Prelude: Or, The Growth of a Poet’s Mind (1850). Although Wordsworth was known for his adventurous spirit and independent nature, he also cherished moments of solitude during his childhood.

In 1787, Wordsworth began his studies at St. John’s College, Cambridge. Despite his tall and solemn demeanor, along with his modest attire, he did not shine academically nor did he blend easily into the social circles of the time. Reflecting on this period in The Prelude, he remarked that he was "not for that hour,/ Nor for that place," indicating a sense of misalignment with his surroundings and an unclear path ahead.

The summer of 1790 saw Wordsworth embark on a transformative walking tour through France and the Alps with his friend Robert Jones. Upon graduating from Cambridge the following year, he ascended Mount Snowdon, an experience he later immortalized with symbolic significance in The Prelude. Wordsworth's return to France in late 1791 coincided with the height of the French Revolution. His friendship with Michel Beaupuy, a French Republican soldier, fueled his revolutionary enthusiasm, which he eloquently captured in his poetry, celebrating "France standing on the top of golden hours." During this stay, he also met Annette Vallon, with whom he had a daughter, Caroline.

December 1792 marked Wordsworth's return to England, soon followed by his debut publications, An Evening Walk and Descriptive Sketches. Over the next two years in London, Wordsworth engaged with radical politics and struggled with England's war stance against France. However, the descent of the Revolution into chaos and conquest left him in moral turmoil.

Financial relief came in 1795 when Wordsworth received a legacy of nine hundred pounds from his late friend Raisley Calvert. He and his sister, Dorothy, settled in a cottage in Racedown, Dorset, where he found solace and stability. It was here that Wordsworth formed significant friendships with fellow poets Robert Southey and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. The latter relationship, blossoming in 1797, heralded a prolific decade for Wordsworth, in which he penned many of his most renowned works.

Life’s Work

Samuel Taylor Coleridge deeply admired Wordsworth, who, in return, was greatly influenced by Coleridge's intellectual depth and critical insights. Coleridge played a vital role in refining Wordsworth's view of his poetic mission. Their close companionship led to the anonymous publication of Lyrical Ballads in 1798, a collection that, despite initially lukewarm reviews, would become a cornerstone of English literature. Wordsworth's pioneering approach involved using simple, everyday language to portray the lives of ordinary people, challenging neoclassical norms of poetic subject matter and diction.

In late 1799, after a brief sojourn in Germany with Coleridge, Wordsworth and Dorothy moved to Dove Cottage in Grasmere, within the Lake District. Coleridge soon joined them in nearby Keswick. Their residence at Dove Cottage, which lasted nearly a decade, became a period of abundant creativity for Wordsworth, enhanced by a tranquil domestic life and his marriage to Mary Hutchinson in 1802. This serene environment proved ideal for his writing; here, Wordsworth completed an early version of The Prelude, laid plans for The Recluse (1888), and produced significant works like Home at Grasmere, Michael (1800), and the expanded preface to Lyrical Ballads in 1801. He also drafted the initial stanzas of the revered Ode: Intimations of Immortality (1807).

Amidst this creative flourishing, personal sorrow struck in 1805 with the death of his brother John, a shipwreck victim. This loss deeply grieved Wordsworth and Dorothy, influencing his "Elegiac Stanzas Suggested by a Picture of Peele Castle" (1807). In the same year, Wordsworth completed the second version of The Prelude, a work he never formally titled, referring to it simply as the narrative of his life.

Approaching middle age, Wordsworth's perspectives shifted from radicalism to conservatism, aligning with the Tory Party and the Church of England. With family responsibilities and as a father of five by 1810, he increasingly valued societal stability. His "Ode to Duty" reflects the somber, resolute outlook that Victorian society later revered. He perceived a loss of the visionary connection with nature that had inspired his early poetry, a theme explored in Ode: Intimations of Immortality and "Elegiac Stanzas."

In 1808, the Wordsworth household relocated to a larger space at Allan Bank, where Coleridge often visited despite the strain on their friendship due to Coleridge's declining health and opium addiction. A public falling-out arose in 1810 following Wordsworth's critical remarks about Coleridge, temporarily severing their bond. Although reconciled eighteen months later, their friendship never fully recovered.

Tragedy again touched the Wordsworth family in 1812 with the deaths of two infant children. In 1813, they settled permanently at Rydal Mount. Financial stability improved when Wordsworth accepted a position as Distributor of Stamps, reinforcing his conservative tendencies.

Wordsworth’s publication of The Excursion in 1814 marked his first new release in seven years but met with mixed reviews. Nevertheless, his standing as a preeminent poet garnered increasing recognition. By 1820, with the acclaim of The River Duddon, Wordsworth was universally celebrated, though his greatest poetic achievements were realized in earlier years.

In his later life, Wordsworth enjoyed widespread fame, drawing admirers to Rydal Mount. In 1843, he was named poet laureate, affirming his status as a literary elder statesman. The loss of his daughter Dora in 1847 dealt a profound blow, compounding his distress over Dorothy's long-term illness, which left her in a fragile physical and mental state. Wordsworth continued to care for her until his death on April 23, 1850. Posthumously, The Prelude, his crowning poetic achievement, was published, as he had desired.

Summary

William Wordsworth stands as a pivotal figure in the transition from eighteenth-century neoclassicism to nineteenth-century Romanticism. This era prized imagination and emotional depth over rational intellect, a shift prominently embodied in Wordsworth's works. His poetry transcended the mundane, seeking a unity between the observer and the world, as epitomized in The Prelude.

The Romantics valued the spontaneity of emotion and creative expression, a philosophy encapsulated in Wordsworth's assertion that poetry flows from a "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings." This opened poetry to personal and existential themes, as seen in Wordsworth's reflections in The Prelude. He viewed poets as visionaries, and poetry itself as "the first and last of all knowledge," a sentiment he elaborated upon in his writings.

Younger poets of the Romantic movement, like Percy Bysshe Shelley and John Keats, drew inspiration from Wordsworth's groundbreaking ideas. Although his posthumous reputation waned slightly, Victorian critic Matthew Arnold revitalized interest in Wordsworth's legacy. Today, he remains revered, ranking alongside John Milton and William Shakespeare, with the majestic lines of The Prelude and the powerful Ode: Intimations of Immortality continuing to resonate with readers.

Bibliography

Bloom, Harold, ed. William Wordsworth. New York: Chelsea House, 1985. A selection of contemporary critical perspectives on Wordsworth.

Darbishire, Helen. The Poet Wordsworth. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1950. Offers an eloquent introduction to Wordsworth's poetry by a leading scholar.

Davies, Hunter. William Wordsworth: A Biography. New York: Atheneum Publishers, 1980. An informal, accessible biography that foregoes detailed poetry analysis.

Gill, Stephen, ed. The Cambridge Companion to Wordsworth. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003. Fifteen essays providing an insightful overview of Wordsworth's work.

Moorman, Mary. William Wordsworth: A Biography. 2 vols. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1957, 1965. Set the standard for biographical scholarship on Wordsworth.

Wordsworth, William. Letters of William Wordsworth: A New Selection. Edited by Alan G. Hill. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1984. A collection of over 160 letters offering insight into Wordsworth's life and relationships.

Wordsworth, William. The Poetical Works. Edited by Ernest de Selincourt and Helen Darbishire. 5 vols. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1940-1949. Comprehensive collection of Wordsworth's poems.

Wordsworth, William. The Prelude, 1799, 1805, 1850. Edited by Jonathan Wordsworth, M. H. Abrams, and Stephen Gill. New York: W. W. Norton and Co., 1979. Definitive edition of Wordsworth’s masterpiece, allowing comparison of different versions and including critical essays.