Coleridge & Wordsworth

William Wadsworth and Samuel Coleridge were the pioneers in the field of Romanticism. They became close friends as they shared many of the same passions including nature and the ideals passed down by the French Revolution. While they shared many of the same ideals, there were several differences between the two celebrated authors.
Wordsworth’s poetry is characterized by his simple diction as well as the simplicity of his subjects (often nature). His poetry was revolutionary in his conscious decision to simplify his work. He consciously deleted the “flowery language, the wittily crafted figures of speech, the effusive praise, and tragic complaints that had defined poetry in the past.” The French Revolution had an effect on both poets. They embraced the newly conceived ideas of “social justice and individual rights,” and allowed them to influence their poetry. The setting for Coleridge’s “Kubla Kahn,” is one of the premiere political organizations in history.
Coleridge focused much more on the blossoming of imagination, and it is often the subject of his poems. He grew up reading fantasy and would lose himself in such grand tales as Arabian Nights. He thought of creativity and intellect in a different way than Wordsworth, and eventually it would be their disagreement about such things which would lead to their breach of friendship. “Kubla Kahn” offers much more rhyme than does “Tintern Abbey,” and although nature plays a large role in both poems, it is more prevalent in “Tintern Abbey” than in “Kubla Kahn.”