Short note on Lyrical Ballads.

Lyrical Ballads is a groundbreaking poetry collection published in 1798 jointly by the two romantic rebel poets William Wordsworth (1770-1850) and Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834). It opens a new door to poetry writing. Before this poetic movement, poetry contained the heroic tales of gods and goddesses and the mighty power of the Kings. It started composing poetry for the ordinary person and appreciating natural beauty. This collection marks the beginning of the Romantic Age in English literature history. 

Ordinary Lives, Extraordinary Poetry: The poems in “Lyrical Ballads” were not about monarchs or goddesses but about farmers, sailors, and lonely older men. They spoke about love, loss, fear, and the simple beauty of nature. This change in the principle of poetry writing was like polishing a limelight on the neglected corners of human experience.

Nature is the Star: Another romantic element in the poems of Lyrical Ballads is nature. Wordsworth was obsessed with nature. He saw it as a source of wisdom and beauty. He portrayed mountains, lakes, and even weeds with such vivid detail that you could practically smell the fresh air and feel the sun on your skin. Nature reflects human emotions and makes us happy, sad, or even nervous, depending on the poem.

Feeling over Fancy: Wordsworth called poetry “the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings.” He refused poems to sound pretty and wanted them to grab the human heart and make men feel something. The Lyrical Ballads explored emotions like fear, joy, wonder, and guilt. These are all in everyday language that hit you right in the gut.

A Romantic Revolution: The Lyrical Ballads were not just poems. Instead, they were a declaration for a new way of writing. They established the Romantic movement, which stressed feelings, imagination, and connection with nature. This movement had a powerful influence on literature, music, and art. It also shapes how we see the world and represent ourselves even today.

Some Famous Lines from Different Poems of Lyrical Ballads:

Water, water, everywhere,

And all the boards did shrink;

Water, water, everywhere,

Nor any drop to drink.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

“He prayeth best, who loveth best

All things both great and small;

For the dear God who loveth us,

He made and loveth all.”

Samuel Taylor Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.

Once again I see

These hedge-rows, hardly hedge-rows, little lines

Of sportive wood run wild: these pastoral farms,

Green to the very door;

William Wordsworth, Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey, On Revisiting the Banks of the Wye during a Tour. July 13, 1798.

In summary, Lyrical Ballads have a special place in the history of English literature because of their revolutionary poetry technique. Through its focus on nature, everyday life, and ordinary language, the collection brought about a remarkable change in how poetry was created and valued. This left an unending impact on the following generations of poets.