This document presents information about Samuel Taylor Coleridge's views on poetry, prose, and poems. It discusses the key differences between prose and poems, noting that prose uses straightforward language in paragraphs while poetry uses more decorative language in line breaks and stanzas. It outlines two of Coleridge's cardinal points of poetry: the power of exciting sympathy through truthful naturalness, and the power of novelty through imaginative modification. The document also shares Coleridge's definition of poetry as resulting from poetic genius through the modification of thoughts and emotions in the poet's mind.
Literary Theory and Criticism According to Coleridge
1.
2. PROSE, POEM AND POETRY
Presented by Dharma Gohel
Smt. S. B. Gardi Department of English
MKBU
PAPER NO : 03 Literary Theory and Criticism
MA SEM : 01
BATCH : 2017-2019
EMAIL ID : dharmagohel71@gmail.com
Enrollment no : 2069108420180014
3. Born : 21 October 1772,
England
Died : 25 Octoberr 1834,
England
Occupation : Poet, Critic,
Philosopher
Notable Works : The
Rime of the Ancient
Mariner, Kubla Khan,
Christabel
Contained in 24
chapters
4. COLERIDGE’S VIEWS ON LYRICAL BALLADS
“Had Mr. Wordsworth’s Poems been the silly, the
childish things, which they were for 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 deed weight, into the
slough of oblivian, and have dragged the
preface along with them.”
5. TWO CARDINAL POINTS OF POETRY
The power of exciting the
sympathy of the reader by a
faithful adherence to the truth of
nature.
The power of giving the interest
of novelty by modifying with the
colours of imagination.
7. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PROSE AND
POEM
Nearly all writing shares the goal of
communicating a message to an
audience, but how that message is
communicated can differ greatly.
The divisions between poetry and
prose are not clear-cut but, here are
some.
8. DIFFERENCES
Most every writing is in prose form.
The language of prose is typically
straightforward without much decoration. Eg :
when someone says red color it clearly means
red only not orange or dark red.
Ideas are contained in sentences that are
arranged into paragraphs.
There are no line braeks. Sentences run to the
right margin.
Prose looks like large blocks of words.
9. TO BE CONTINUED…
Poetry is typically reserved for expressing
something special in an artistic way.
The language of poetry tends to be more
expressive or decorated, with comparisions,
rhyme, and rhythm contributing to a different
sound and feel.
Ideas are contained in line that may or may
not be sentences. Lines are arranged in
stanzas. Poetry uses line breaks for various
reasons.
10. The shape of poetry can very depending on
line length and the intent of the poet.
Legitimate poem : Coleridge says that a
legitimate poem is one whose each and
every part support the entire poem and
reflects the wholeness. I is also called
organic hole.
11. POETRY ACCORDING TO COLERIDGE:
“poetry of the highest kind may exist without
the conradistinguishing objects of a poem.”
For eg : writings of Plato, Jeremy Taylor and
Bible.
According to Coleridge: “ Poetry is a
distinction resulting from the poetic genius
itself, which sustains and modifies the
images, thoughts, and emotions of the poet’s
own mind.”
12. CONTINNUE :
‘ Poetry for Coleridge is an activity of the
poet’s mind, and a poem is merely one of the
forms of his expression, a verbal expression
of that activity and poetic activity is basically
an activity of the imagination.
Thus, Coleridge is the first English critic who
based his literary criticism on philosophical
principles.