William Wordsworth

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William Wordsworth – 21 April 2009

In 1798 William Wordsworth and his friend Samuel Taylor Coleridge published Lyrical Ballads – the book that marked the beginning of the Romantic era in England. Wordsworth loved nature and believed that the finest poetry could be written in the simplest words. In 1843 Queen Victoria appointed him Poet Laureate of England.

Wordsworth’s sonnet “Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802” describes London in the early morning.

Composed upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802
William Wordsworth (1770–1850)

Earth has not anything to show more fair:
Dull would he be of soul who could pass by
A sight so touching in its majesty:
This City now doth, like a garment, wear
The beauty of the morning; silent, bare,
Ships, towers, domes, theatres, and temples lie
Open unto the fields, and to the sky;
All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.
Never did sun more beautifully steep
In his first splendor valley, rock, or hill;
Ne’er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!
The river glideth at his own sweet will:
Dear God! the very houses seem asleep;
And all that mighty heart is lying still!

For a large collection of poetry and stories, visit:
http://www.all-creatures.org/poetrydir.html
 

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