William Wordsworth 1770 1850 Born in the Lake

William Wordsworth 1770 -1850

• Born in the Lake District—N. W of England near • • Scotland Wealthy family—attended Cambridge university Inspired by revolutionary ideas of F. Revolution Fell in love w/ French woman—Annette Vallon War between France and England made it impossible to be together Friend died and left enough for Wordsworth to spend the rest of his life writing poetry 1795—met Coleridge and they wrote Lyrical Ballads together 1843—poet laureate

Wordsworth’s poetry • Concerned with how nature affects, guides and nourishes • • the human mind Poetry is “emotion recollected in tranquility” Nature was a source of happiness and fulfillment Process of memory allows Wordsworth to retrace the growth of the moral and artistic self Page 436 “My Heart Leaps Up When I Behold” • First line—refers to his deep love of nature—personification • Happiness in nature • Progression –was, is, will be speaks to his understanding of the • • connection between natural world and memory He wants to feel the same sense of awe each time he beholds the wonders of the natural world Paradox—child is father of the man Experiences of childhood make us into who we are— v Feelings of childhood carried through to adulthood v

• Page 439 “The World is too Much with Us” • Page 440 #1, 2 • Read pages 441 -442 Coleridge