Extract from The Prelude (1850)

Summary

In the first part of this poem, the speaker begins by recalling how he came upon a boat tied to a tree along the water. He untied it, got in, and pushed it off into the lake. He knew that he shouldn’t steal the boat, but it also brought him pleasure. Alongside the water, he noted natural wonders like mountains and the water itself. He focused on one specific mountain and rowed in its direction. It got bigger until it rose above him and blocked out the stars. Suddenly, he felt fear at the sight of it and the feeling that it was coming after him. He was occupied for days after by that mood and the thought that there was more to the world than he understood.

Context

The Prelude

• This is an extract from a much longer lyric poem where Wordsworth explored ‘the growth of my own mind’ as a poet. 

• This extract is from the first part, titled: ‘Childhood’ and is a flashback to a time he stole a boat at home in the Lake District. 

• The journey symbolises his emotional journey as a poet, which started with a mystic, and emotional connection with the power of nature. It also symbolises a journey within memory, looking for meaning. 

William Wordsworth

• Wordsworth was a great Romantic poet – a movement interested in emotion, nature and a mystical connection with a higher power. 

• The full poem was considered by Wordsworth as his masterpiece.

• The point of view is of the poet remembering, so it includes the theme of memory as well as identity.

• As an adult, Wordsworth understands the significance of the feeling he had: of a communion with a higher power. 

The Romanics

• Romanticism was an intellectual and artistic movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century. It was a reactionary response against the scientific rationalisation of nature during the Enlightenment, commonly expressed in literature, music, painting and drama.

• Romanticism was also a response to the rapid expansion of industry as a result of the impending Industrial Revolution.

• To the Romantics, nature was the most powerful force so they took issue with the factory system of mass production which was centred on processes that used and controlled natural forces such as water and wind, but also increased power by increasingly using fossil fuels.

• Romantics viewed the exploitation of natural resources for industry as degrading and wrongful. 

• Nature as a powerful force always remains a centric theme in all Romantic pieces of art and literature.