Wordsworth’s Metaphysical Equipoise

Abstract

In this chapter I discuss Wordsworth’s early poetry written between 1798 and 1805. This period corresponds to Coleridge’s early work discussed in the last chapter and to the early stages of the composition of Wordsworth’s planned philosophical epic, The Recluse. I argue that during this period of creativity he attains a metaphysical equipoise ¹; that is to say, he attains a deep balance between the outer world and the inner mind. This equipoise consistently eluded Coleridge in his own poetry. The main reason for Wordsworth’s success is his poetic organicism, the view that there is a deep connection between the imaginative powers of the poet and the natura naturans experienced when the poet communes with the natural world. While there is a clear connection with Coleridge’s theoretical dualism of the mechanical and the organic, ² for Coleridge this theory is mainly placed in the service of his literary criticism rather than in actual poetic creation. By contrast, Wordsworth seeks to attain a union between mind and the natural world through careful deployment of stylistic devices in his poetry. In this way, Wordsworth’s organicism comes very close to the German Naturphilosophie explored by Coleridge.