"Biographia literaria" by Coleridge

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Assignment on Biographia literaria by Cleridge

Name: Dharaba Rayjada
Semester: 1
Roll No.: 8
Paper No.: 3 literary theory and criticism
Enrolment No.: 2069108420180045
Email id: dharabarayjada021@gmail.com
Year: 2017-18
Submitted to: Department of English Maharaja Krishnkumarsinhji Bhavnagar University

Biographia literaria by Coleridge

“Biographia literaria” by samuel taylor coleridge, which he published in 1817. There are autobiographical elements, it is not a straightforward or linear autobiography. Instead, it is meditative. But here we only discuss about the chapter number 14. So lets see what coleridge want to discuss in his chapter number 14.

Topics which we are going to discuss of chapter number 14

 Two cardinal points
 Wordsworth’s poetic creed
 Difference between poem and prose
 Difference between poem and poetry

Two cardinal points

Coleridge talk about his and his friend wordsworth’s different point of view about the poem or the subjects of the poem and between this conversation they come to the two cardinal points of poem

1) The power of exciting the sympathy of the reader by a faithful adherence to the truth of nature.
2) The power of giving the interest of novelty by modifying with the colours of imagination.

The first point is given by wordsworth and the second one is by coleridge. Both are talking about different subjects of poem. According to wordsworth it should be about ordinary people and their day to day life and village life and poet should have to notice all normal day to day things and write upon that to put novelty in writing and vision of looking at regular things. While coleridge prefer to show everything supernatural or put natural things in supernatural way or make incidents and agents were to be supernatural.

Wordsworth's poetic creed

There are many critics who very harshly criticized wordsworth’s “lyrical ballads”. Though coleridge did not agree with wordsworth’s view on poetic diction, then even he admire his poetic creed in chapter-14.

Coleridge writes in his defence: “Had Mr. Wordsworth's poems been the silly, the childish things, which they were for a long time described as being; had they been really distinguished from the compositions of other poets merely by meanness of language and inanity of thought; had they indeed contained nothing more than what is found in the parodies and pretended imitations of them; they must have sunk at once, a dead weight, into the slough of oblivion, and have dragged the preface along with them”.

Coleridge very clearly says that though wordswoth use the language of ordinary people but then even his poetry has that charm and something unique that it survives through ages otherwise it will sink in the sea of literature. He further says that the reader of wordsworth’s poem is increasing and they are not only ordinary people. Language of real life has strong criticism on wordsworth’s “lyrical ballads”. At some point coleridge very clearly says that he is not agree with wordsworth so we can say that here coleridge give his opinion very honestly.

Difference between poem and prose

When we normally asked someone that what difference do you find between poem and prose they quickly says that poem has stanzas and prose written in paragraphs or poem has rhyme while prose don’t have rhyme. In lower sense addition of meter and rhyme makes difference between prose and poem if we think like that  then to remember something special we organized words in proper way then it is also called as poem? But to coleridge this is not the difference.

Coleridge thinks that both have same composition, the difference is between the combination of those elements and objects aimed at in both the conposition. Difference of object will be difference of combination. According to him the difference is in immediate purpose and ultimate end of poem and prose.

Generally the immediate purpose of prose is to give truth and ultimate end is to give pleasure while in poem the immediate purpose is to give pleasure and ultimate end is to give truth. Here also coleridge says that mere addition of rhyme does not make poem it the meter is added to the poem that the whole poem should have to harmonious with is whole poem should have to that synchronism.

A poem, therefore, may be defined as, that species of composition, which is opposed to works of science, by proposing for its immediate object pleasure, not truth; and from all other species (having this object in common with it) it is discriminated by proposing to itself such delight from the whole, as is compatible with a distinct gratification from each component part.

Coleridge also differentiate the prose and poem which has same elements, for example prose like novels and romances have their immediate purpose as to give pleasure and ultimate end is to give truth so this is same as poem but here coleridge called it legitimate poem.

He defines legitimate poem as  “it must be one, the parts of which mutually support and explain each other; all in their proportion harmonizing with, and supporting the purpose and known influences of metrical arrangement”.

While reading legitimate poem reader not only think about ending the poem or there is not only end which give pleasure the whole process of reading the poem is delightful. So not only end whole journey of reading poem should be pleasurable.

Difference between poem and poetry

Coleridge not only give difference between prose and poem he also try to give difference between poem and poetry. He says that length doesn’t make any difference between poem and poetry there is nothing like that poem is short and poetry is long. He also says that not all poem is poetry and neither ought to be a poetry.

So what is poetry? Coleridge defines poetry as, “Distinction resulting from the poetic genius itself, which sustains and modifies the images, thoughts, and emotions of the poet's own mind.”

After this john shawcross says that the difference between poem and poetry is not cleared by coleridge and further instead of talking about poetry he started talking about poet’s mind. For coleridge poetry is an activity of mind while poem is merely one of the form of its expression rather verbal expression.

Further David daiches says that poetry for coleridge is a wider category than a poem. It brings ‘The whole soul of man; in to activity. With each faculty playing its proper part according to its ‘relative worth and dignity’. It happens when the power of mind and imagination both are at work and the all objects combined and make complex unity then it results as the poetry.

 David Daiches further writes in A Critical History of English Literature, “The employment of the secondary imagination is a poetic activity, and we can see why Coleridge is let from a discussion of a poem to a discussion of the poet’s activity when we realize that for him the poet belongs to the larger company of those who are distinguished by the activity of their imagination.” By virtue of his imagination, which is a synthetic and magical power, he harmonize and blends together various elements and thus diffuses a tone and spirit of unity over the whole. It manifests itself most clearly in the balance or reconciliation of opposite or discordant qualities – such as (a) of sameness, with difference, (b) of the general, with the concrete, (c) the idea, with the image, (d) the individual, with the representative, (e) the sense of novelty and freshness, with old and familiar objects, (f) a more than usual state of emotion, with more than usual order, (g) judgment with enthusiasm. And while this imagination blends and harmonizes the natural and the artificial, it subordinates to nature, the manner to the matter, and our admiration of the poet to our sympathy with the poetry.

Summing up

While summing up we can say that coleridge shows his views upon poem and prose and poetry and upon wordsworth. In the whole book “biographia literaria” he mainly wants to give explanation on his works. In chapter-14 he shows himself as philosopher and give his views upon different things may be he is the first one to give difference of poetry and poem though he can not give it very aptly or his answer is not convincing. So this is what coleridge talking about in chapter-14 from his book “biographia literaria”.

Reference

Study materials