Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that friendship was a crucial concept to the Romantic poets; the leading literary figures of this period were intensely aware of each other, continually informed of others' work and the reactions to it. The author points out that Coleridge's poem, "The Eolian Harp", was developed over a period of twenty-three years, beginning in 1795; in its changing nature can be seen, among other things, the influence of Wordsworth on Coleridge's poetic art. The paper relates that Charles Lamb (1775-1834), always among Coleridge's most sympathetic, perceptive, and influential critics, played an important role in the development of Coleridge's poetic style, arguing for a clearer voice of feeling in Coleridge's verse in terms that first anticipated, then paralleled and strengthened, the influence of Wordsworth's "plain style" on Coleridge's writings.

From the Paper:

"In 1791 William Wordsworth published two volumes of verse, "Descriptive Sketches" and "An Evening Walk". These two works acquired a number of admirers for the young poet, among them being Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Coleridge had been a student at Cambridge from 1791 to 1793, and upon reading "Descriptive Sketches" had declared that "seldom, if ever, was the emergence of an original poetic genius above the literary horizon more evidently announced". The two already shared some acquaintances (indeed, one of Coleridge's contemporaries at Cambridge was William Wordsworth's brother, Christopher) and they eventually met in the autumn of 1795. Either on this occasion or shortly afterwards, Wordsworth shared his poem "Guilt and Sorrow" with Coleridge, and the latter recorded the effect it had upon him."

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