Name: Hajra Zahid

A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF WORDSWORTH AND MATHEW ARNOLD

WORDSWORTH

William Wordsworth was primarily a poet but still he has given us a most comprehensive critical
document in the form of the 'Preface to Lyrical Ballads'.

POETIC DICTION
The Wordsworthian poetic diction includes the philosophy of simplification of language. In general
poetic diction means choice of words which lends a unique style for each poet. It also means how a
particular poet chooses his or her own language and how he plays around with words. Wordsworth was
not really satisfied by what was going on in the name of Poetry. In the preface of Lyrical Ballads, he
wrote that the neoclassical mode of writing poetry was inane and unnecessarily ornamental. Wordsworth
was interested in writing poems and the lyrical ballads in the real language used really by men. He said
that the humble and rustic life in the rural areas is with more genuine emotions rather than the life of men
in the city. However, Wordsworth has not strictly adhered to this idea in his writings. He introduced a
fresh speech that was related to the common or country men people. He wanted to introduce simplistic
themes and a language easily comprehended by men. He contrasted the philosophic language used by
Shakespeare and Milton with the real language of common men. He also believed that the difference
between prose and poetry is not that of language rather the rhyming scheme. He simply denounces the
simulated language. He tells in the preface that his aims were to
“to prefer occurrences and circumstances from common life” and “a selection of
language, sincerely exploited by men”.

NATURE OF POETRY:
On the nature of poetry, Wordsworth states that:
“Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful passion”.
According to him, the emotions of a poet direct the course of his writings. The true and genuine way of
producing poetry is for the poet to have a proper mood and temperament. The verses must be written in a
flow of internal feelings. However, he believes that a good poet must never write instantly without
meditation and contemplation over it deeply.
"I have said that Poetry is the spontaneous
overflow of powerful feelings: it takes its
origin from emotion recollected in tranquility:
the emotion is contemplated till by a species . of reaction, the tranquility gradually disappears,
and an emotion, kindred to that which was before
the subject of contemplation, is gradually pro-
duced, does itself actually exist in the mind.
In this mood successful composition generally
begins, and in a mood similar to this it is car-
ried on; but the emotion, of whatever kind, and
in whatever degree, from various causes, is
qualified by various pleasures, so that in des-
cribbing any passions whatsoever, which are vo-
luntarily described, the mind will, upon the whole,
be in a state of enjoyment."

FUNCTION OF POETRY:
According to Wordsworth, poetry is the presentation of events of common life. It is a way of conversing
the very soul experience of events with the readers.
To him, poetry is meant to serve the purpose of life and morality. The feelings and emotions of the
characters are much more important that the actions and situations. Poet is a man speaking to a man.
Traditionally the purpose of Poetry was to instruct and delight. But for Wordsworth, function of Poetry is
to give pleasure. Serious poetry provides a pleasure of more exalted kind.

MATHEW ARNOLD:

Arnold wrote The study of Poetry in which he criticizes the art of poetry as well as the art of criticism.

POETIC DICTION
Poetic beauty is contained in the manner and style. It is marked by excellence of diction and flow of
verse. Arnold mentions excellence of diction but does not explain what it is. According to him, if a poem
lacks high seriousness, it cannot mark excellence of poetic diction.

NATURE OF POETRY:
Arnold believes that poetry does not present life as it is, rather the poet adds something to it from his own
noble nature. He says that poetry alone can be our sustenance and stay in an era where religious beliefs
are fast losing their hold. He endorses Wordsworth's view that 'poetry is the impassioned expression
which is in the countenance of all Science', adding 'What is a countenance without its expression?' and
calls poetry 'the breath and finer spirit of knowledge'.
Arnold points out that excellence of poetry lies “both in its matter or its substance and in its manner or
style.”

FUNCTION OF POETRY
Arnold describes poetry as criticism of life. Like Wordsworth he insisted that poetry is to be rightly held
as a profoundly earnest, important, and enduring thing, and that it is to poetry that mankind will more and
more have to turn "to interpret life for us, to console, to sustain us." According to Arnold, poetry must
be such that it deals directly with the life of men. With the help of rhythm and rhyme, a poet aims at
evoking his vision before the readers in a very sensitive, inclusive and penetrating way. Poetry is “a
criticism of life under the conditions fixed for that criticism by the laws of poetic truth and poetic
beauty.”