The Prelude By William Wordsworth Book I & II
Analyze the language of The Prelude (Books I and
II) in the light of Wordsworth's Preface to the Lyrical Ballade
Introduction:
Wordsworth was a pioneer of what came to be known
as the Romantic Movement in English poetry. His Preface to the lyrical Ballade
has been called the manifesto of the English Romantic Movement. Written in 1800
and elaborated in 1802, the Preface puts forward Wordsworth's theory of poetry.
In 1802 an Appendix, added to the Preface, dealt with Wordsworth's ideas on
poetic diction, or the language of poetry. Poetry, according to Wordsworth,
should deal with common incidents which were rendered significant because of
the color of imagination thrown over them. The language, accordingly, would
have to be simple but effective in communicating the emotion and feelings to the
reader.
Wordsworth's views on poetic diction may be
briefly stated as follows:
i.
The language
of poetry should be the real language of men. It should not have any
artificiality about it. (By men, Wordsworth meant the rustic folk and humble
people)
ii.
A selection of
such language should be used: the language should be purified of coarseness and
oddities.
iii.
It should be
the language of men in a state of vivid sensation.
iv.
The language
of poetry is not essentially different from that of prose.
The Prelude: is not primarily meant to illustrate the theory.
Examining The
Prelude, we have to take note of the fact that the poem was not written,
like some of the Lyrical Ballads, to illustrate that “a selection from the real language
of men in a state of vivid sensation is adapted to the purposes of poetic
pleasure.” The language is selected from the whole of his experience,
and the style in which he molds it rises with the character and the intensity
of the emotion it has to express. Wordsworth's style is apparently simple and
expressive of genuine and sincere feeling. However, Wordsworth was wrong in
equating sincerity with artlessness. Wordsworth himself altered The Prelude repeatedly, obviously to
make it artistically effective. Behind the simplicity lies intense study and
careful artistry.
Lofty in its simplicity of language:
The Prelude in typically Wordsworthian, for many of its
loftiest passages, is nobly bare, of almost scriptural plainness. “Consummately
right, in a large austere way.” It is Wordsworth's peculiar genius to
distill from an incident a particular emotion and then to find words that will
convey the quality of that emotion as accurately as possible-
Made one long
bathing of a summer's day.
Suitable words for emotions expressed.
In many passages, Wordsworth's choice of words,
though simple, is suitable for the incident or feeling expressed. In the
skating episode, for instance, the alliteration of imitates the sound of
skating. The hard cold feeling of steel is suggested by words echoing with
clear metallic sounds--"chiming", "smitten", etc. The
movement of the verse suits the incident described.
Language contributes to the sincerity of feeling.
The Prelude, like Wordsworth's poetry in general, does not
have far-fetched consist of elaborate rhetorical devices. The poem is in blank
verse a meter which Wordsworth chose though fully conscious of its pitfalls. He
is sometimes unable to avoid the rhythmical heaviness of Milton's imitators- “This
labor will be welcome, honored Friend” However, on the whole, the lines have sure, concerted, and varied music of his own. In the typically Wordsworthian passages
(such
as Lines 401-424 in Book I) there is little obvious metaphor. The “run-on”
nature of the lines, with the sense flowing without pause, assists the feeling
that the words are not deliberately placed but fall naturally into their right
position unobtrusively. This in turn contributes to an impression of sincerity
and conviction.
An occasional “distortion” from the language of
prose objected to by Wordsworth does, indeed, occur--such as in the inversion
of subject and verb or the positioning of an adverbial phrase: “not in vain…..didst
thou intertwine”. But generally, these “distortions” follow idiomatic usage. The
Prelude is not free of some of the “devices” denounced by Wordsworth as artificial.
There is antithesis, though not too emphatic; there are complex patterns of
cross-reference: “high objects/enduring things; life/nature feeling/thought;
pain/fear. There is the accumulation of nouns. But these characteristics do not
call special attention to themselves.
Language not differing from that of prose
On the whole, The
Prelude has a lofty simplicity of language in keeping with Wordsworth's
theory of poetic diction. To be sure, the language cannot be associated with “rustic”
folk. But then Wordsworth had made a “selection” of words commonly used. Many
passages in The Prelude pass Wordsworth's poetical test of the language not
differing essentially from that of prose
I heard among the solitary hills
Low breathings coming after me and sound
Of undistinguishable motion.........
Wordsworth's metaphors are drawn from sources of
nature and are unobtrusively brought in; they do not distract attention-some
examples being “like a tempest” (Book –
I, Line... 584) for joy and creative activity: “a long-continued frost” (Book.1,
Line... 40) for the inhibition of that activity.
Conclusion:
The poet, Wordsworth knew well, was a craftsman,
who must toil with unremitting patience at every detail of his work, till it
has gained a clear outline, a fuller substance: otherwise, it could not acquire
that organic power that is the sure touchstone of art, as Selincourt remarks.
But the language of The Prelude is
adequate to its theme. Wordsworth's first aim, as it was also his great
achievement, was sincerity, and the language of The Prelude, on the whole, communicates that sincerity.
$$$$$