Comprehensive Study Guide: Wordsworth, the Romantics, and the Philosophy of Literature Notes and on
Subjective Preference vs. Artistic Merit
The Cheesesteak vs. Gourmet Dinner Metaphor: The speaker distinguishes between personal favorites and artistic quality. While a cheesesteak might be preferred for emotional or comfort reasons, a gourmet dinner is objectively better prepared, more advanced in culinary arts, and more complex.
William Wordsworth vs. Personal Favorites: A student or reader does not have to personally like Wordsworth to appreciate his greatness. His status is based on his abilities, concepts, and technical skill.
The Works of Ancient Tolkien: The speaker cites "the words of ancient Tolkien" as their favorite book, despite acknowledging that other novels may possess greater artistic or creative merit.
Billy (The Player): Mention of an athlete named Billy who likely won't be a Hall of Famer but is a favorite because he "plays big."
William Wordsworth: Biography and Relationships
Early Life and Loss: Wordsworth lost both parents at a young age. His father passed away after getting sick while "walking the boards" (getting trapped on them). His mother also died young.
Dorothy Wordsworth: William’s sister and best friend. They were separated for a long time following their parents' deaths but spent their adult lives in the same house.
Living Arrangements: Dorothy lived with William even after he got married. She lived in a house referred to as "the duck cottage in grass" (Dove Cottage in Grasmere).
Literary Contribution: Dorothy was essential to William’s writing. He was allowed to read her journals, which provided material for his poems. The poem "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" (Daffodils) was inspired by an entry Dorothy wrote.
Physicality: Unlike the stereotype of the frail romantic poet who "could have been knocked over with a feather," Wordsworth was athletic and "hardcore."
Examples of Strength: As a child, he rowed out into lakes; in his twenties, he walked through the French Alps, risking his life to experience nature.
Major Works by William Wordsworth
"I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" (Daffodils): Themes include taking a memory with you to provide comfort later.
Wordsworth uses "mental snapshots" to carry beautiful images into the future because camera technology did not exist in the late 1700s.
"The World is Too Much With Us": A sonnet critiquing society’s obsession with earning and spending money rather than communing with nature.
"The Solitary Reaper": Describes a girl cutting grain and singing in a language the speaker doesn't understand. The speaker carries the melody with him long after it is heard.
"Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey":
Setting: Tintern Abbey is a ruined church where nature has grown through the cracks in the walls.
The Three Pillars of the Poem:
Memory as a Tool: The speaker survived years away from the beautiful location by recalling its image.
Growth and Aging: As a young man, nature was a place for physical activity (climbing, running). As an older man, he values it for calmness, sitting back, and reflection. He argues this change is not a loss.
The Sublime: This is defined as a deep, direct connection between the individual and nature, resulting in overwhelming emotion.
The New Romantics and Historical Context
Mount Tambora: The New Romantics were inspired and terrified by the 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora, which caused a year of darkness and global cooling.
George Gordon, Lord Byron:
A nobleman by birth and a rebellious soul in both lifestyle and poetry.
Known for his likely bisexuality during a time when it was illegal.
Poem: "She Walks in Beauty": Compares a woman's beauty to the night and a starry sky. Crucially, he argues her outward appearance reflects her inner goodness and balance.
Percy Bysshe Shelley:
Husband of Mary Shelley and close friend to Lord Byron.
Poem: "Ozymandias": Focuses on a king whose monuments have been crushed by time and nature, despite his arrogance.
John Keats:
Died at age 26 of tuberculosis.
Style: Described as a "sonorous" poet whose work is musical and pleasant to listen to regardless of meaning.
Poem: "Ode on a Grecian Urn": Focuses on pictures of lovers and musicians frozen in time on an urn. Keats found the idea of being preserved forever in happiness attractive, likely due to his impending death from illness.
Mary Shelley and Frankenstein
Parentage: Daughter of Mary Wollstonecraft (feminist writer) and William Godwin (intellectual).
Wollstonecraft was progressive, notably keeping her maiden name after marriage.
Wollstonecraft died 11 days after Mary was born, leading to theories that Mary felt abandoned, which influenced the theme of Victor abandoning his creature.
Origins of the Novel: Written during a summer stay with Percy Shelley and Lord Byron. Mary was 18 years old when she began the story as part of a contest to write a horror story.
Genre: Often cited as the first important horror novel and potentially the first science fiction novel (though the speaker notes there isn't much science in it).
Themes:
Responsibility of Science.
Parenthood (Victor as a father figure).
Transgressing the rules of God and Nature.
Ambition: Represented by Victor's drive to end death and Captain Walton's desire to find the Northwest Passage.
Core Themes of Romanticism
Nature: An escape from technological chaos; a teacher; a way to get closer to God.
The Common Man: Poetry should be for everyone, not just the rich or educated. Regular people are "superpowers" for poetry.
Children: They are the "father of the man" and should be allowed to dream and play.
Spirituality: God is viewed as interchangeable with the universe or nature.
The Supernatural: Includes angels, demons, monsters, and mythological creatures.
The Sublime: Defined as experiences that inspire awe and reverence where emotional understanding surpasses rational thought. It is the meeting of the internal emotional world and the external natural world.
Freedom: Belief in the necessity of revolution; support for the American and French Revolutions; anti-censorship.
Modern Romanticism: The Soul Cages (STNG)
Background: STNG (Sting) wrote the album "The Soul Cages" after his parents died.
Connection to Romanticism: Includes themes of nature (the ocean), spirituality, and the common man (ship workers).
Structure: The album moves from loss toward healing, ending with the song "Good Night" as a reconciliation with his parents.
Questions & Discussion
Student Question on "Ode on a Grecian Urn": A student asked if the feeling Keats gets from the urn is the same as a person today looking at a happy family photograph.
Speaker Response: Yes, the urn was the closest Keats had to a photograph in his time. The speaker notes that 50 years later, he might have written the poem about a photograph instead. Both mediums serve to bring a person back to a happy time in memory.
Discussion on Parenting (Alphonse vs. Victor): The speaker notes that despite Alphonse being a great father, Victor turned out "horrible," whereas Victor is a horrible father to the creature. It highlights that you cannot raise two children exactly the same because circumstances always change.
Synthesis: The Purpose of Literature
The "Jaws" Analogy: The speaker watches the movie "Jaws" every summer. While on the surface it is about catching a shark, deeper levels reveal it is a retelling of "Moby Dick" (Captain Quinn as Ahab, Seeking revenge for the USS Indianapolis vs. the White Whale).
Analysis vs. Emotion: The speaker argues you should let literature/music move you emotionally first. If it moves you, only then should you analyze it to understand why it had that power.
The Goal of Life and Art: To understand people. Writers write in an attempt to figure out the human race. The goal for students is to walk away with more questions than answers.