Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Wordsworth and the Paradox of Imagination

After having read Wordsworth and the Paradox of Imagination, I wonder what Pope would have thought of this critique/analysis of Wordsworth's poem. The critique isn't even so much of a critique until the second to last page when the author begins to speak in first person. Throughout the rest of the essay, judgments are made, as is analysis, but it seems quite fair. He sites other scholars and speaks of their thoughts in addition to his own. It seems balanced, and as though the author took the time to view the poem in its entire context. Yet, I still wonder if this would have been up to Pope's standard, and this begs the question of what does it mean to write a "good" critique? After reading Wordsworth's poem again after having read this essay, I have found that I have a much clearer understanding of the poem, so I suppose that this fact alone would make this a beneficial analysis/critique.

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