12.3 "Lyrical Ballads" and its impact on Romantic poetry

"Lyrical Ballads" revolutionized English poetry in 1798. Wordsworth and Coleridge's collaboration blended everyday subjects with supernatural themes, using simple language to elevate the ordinary and make the extraordinary believable.

The collection's impact on Romantic poetry was profound. It championed emotion, imagination, and "the real language of men," rejecting artificial poetic diction and redefining the poet's role in society.

Significance of "Lyrical Ballads"

Revolutionary Collaboration

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• "Lyrical Ballads" (1798) marked a pivotal moment in English literature represented a deliberate effort by Wordsworth and Coleridge to revolutionize poetic language and subject matter
• Collaboration between Wordsworth and Coleridge embodied the Romantic ideal of artistic partnership with each poet contributing their unique strengths to the collection
• Wordsworth focused on everyday subjects and rural life employing simple language to elevate the ordinary
• Coleridge contributed supernatural and exotic themes with a more ornate style
• Division of labor in "Lyrical Ballads" reflected the poets' differing approaches
  • Wordsworth aimed to make the ordinary extraordinary
  • Coleridge sought to make the extraordinary believable
• Collaborative nature of the work challenged traditional notions of authorship and inspired future literary partnerships throughout the Romantic period and beyond (Shelley and Byron)

Manifesto for Romantic Poetry

• Preface to the 1800 edition written by Wordsworth served as a manifesto for Romantic poetry
• Outlined the poets' intentions and theoretical framework
• Emphasized the importance of emotion and imagination in poetry
• Advocated for the use of "the real language of men" in verse
• Rejected artificial poetic diction and elaborate stylistic devices
• Proposed a new role for the poet as a "man speaking to men"
• Influenced subsequent Romantic poets and literary critics (Keats, Hazlitt)

Innovations in "Lyrical Ballads"

Radical Subject Matter

• Use of common rustic subjects and characters represented a radical shift from the elevated themes of Neoclassical poetry
  • "The Idiot Boy" portrayed a mentally disabled protagonist
  • "We Are Seven" featured a conversation with a young rural girl
• Incorporation of supernatural elements blended realism with fantasy expanding the boundaries of poetic subject matter
  • "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" combined maritime adventure with supernatural occurrences
• Focus on individual emotional experiences and introspection emphasized the subjective nature of perception and memory
  • "Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey" explored personal reflections on revisiting a beloved landscape
• Exploration of the relationship between nature and the human mind established a core theme of Romantic poetry
  • "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" connected natural beauty with emotional states

Revolutionary Poetic Language

• Employment of everyday language and speech patterns aimed to create a more accessible and democratic form of poetry
  • "Lines Written in Early Spring" used simple vocabulary and natural imagery
• Use of ballad forms and other traditional meters combined with innovative content created a tension between familiar structures and revolutionary ideas
  • "The Thorn" adapted the ballad form to tell a tragic rural story
• Deliberate rejection of poetic diction and artificial language in favor of "the real language of men" marked a significant departure from 18th-century poetic conventions
  • "Simon Lee" employed colloquial expressions and direct address to the reader
• Experimentation with narrative techniques and perspectives
  • "The Female Vagrant" presented a first-person account of social injustice

Reception of "Lyrical Ballads"

Critical Controversy

• Initial critical reception was mixed with some reviewers praising the collection's freshness and others deriding its simplicity and choice of subject matter
• Anonymity of the first edition led to speculation about authorship with some critics attributing the entire work to a single poet
• Francis Jeffrey's scathing review in the Edinburgh Review (1802) sparked a heated debate about the merits of the new poetic style particularly Wordsworth's theories
  • Jeffrey famously declared "This will never do!" in response to Wordsworth's later work
• Preface to the 1800 edition which explicitly stated the poets' aims became a focal point for critical discussion and influenced subsequent Romantic literary theory
• Samuel Taylor Coleridge's "Biographia Literaria" (1817) provided a retrospective analysis of the collaboration and further elaborated on the theoretical underpinnings of the work
  • Coleridge distinguished between Wordsworth's "natural" style and his own "supernatural" contributions

Growing Influence

• Collection's influence on younger Romantic poets demonstrated its growing acceptance and impact within literary circles
  • John Keats drew inspiration from the nature imagery in "Lyrical Ballads"
  • Percy Bysshe Shelley admired the collection's revolutionary spirit
• Critical discourse surrounding "Lyrical Ballads" contributed to the development of Romantic literary criticism and the concept of the poet as a visionary figure
• Gradual recognition of the work's importance in shaping the Romantic movement
  • William Hazlitt praised the collection's originality in his lectures on English poets
• Debate over the merits of "Lyrical Ballads" extended beyond literary circles influencing broader cultural discussions about art and society

Impact of "Lyrical Ballads"

Transformation of Poetic Themes

• Emphasis on nature as a source of inspiration and spiritual renewal became a defining characteristic of Romantic poetry influencing poets well into the 19th century
  • William Wordsworth's "The Prelude" expanded on themes introduced in "Lyrical Ballads"
• Legitimization of everyday subjects and common people as worthy poetic material expanded the scope of poetry and influenced later social realist movements in literature
  • Elizabeth Barrett Browning's "Aurora Leigh" continued the tradition of focusing on ordinary lives
• Exploration of the supernatural and the imagination in poetry paved the way for later developments in Gothic and fantastic literature
  • Samuel Taylor Coleridge's "Kubla Khan" further developed the imaginative approach introduced in "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner"

Enduring Literary Influence

• Concept of the poet as a mediator between nature and society articulated in the preface shaped the Romantic notion of the poet's role and continues to influence modern perceptions of authorship
• Use of conversational language and the rejection of artificial poetic diction influenced the development of more natural poetic styles in the 19th and 20th centuries
  • Walt Whitman's free verse drew inspiration from Wordsworth's call for natural language
• Focus on individual consciousness and subjective experience in poetry laid the groundwork for later psychological explorations in literature including stream-of-consciousness techniques
  • Virginia Woolf's novels expanded on the introspective approach introduced in "Lyrical Ballads"
• Collaborative nature of "Lyrical Ballads" set a precedent for future literary partnerships and challenged traditional notions of singular authorship in poetry
  • T.S. Eliot and Ezra Pound's collaborative editing process echoed the Wordsworth-Coleridge partnership