Preface to the Lyrical Ballads
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Essay by William Wordsworth
The Preface to Lyrical Ballads is an essay, composed by William Wordsworth, for the second edition published in 1800 of the poetry collection Lyrical Ballads , and then greatly expanded in the third edition of 1802. It came to be seen as a de facto manifesto of the Romantic movement.[1]
Key assertions about poetry include:
- Ordinary life is the best subject for poetry
- Everyday language is best suited for poetry
- Expression of feeling is more important than action or plot
- "Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" that "takes its origin from emotion, recollected in tranquillity"[2]
References
[edit ]- ^ Berman, Douglas Scott (1999). 'The seduction of system': The critical reception of William Wordsworth's preface to 'Lyrical Ballads', 1800–1820 (Thesis). ProQuest 304540675.[page needed ]
- ^ Wordsworth, William. "Lyrical Ballads, with Other Poems, 1800, Volume 1". Project Gutenberg. Retrieved 2024年02月15日.[page needed ]
