“Tintern Abbey”
p. 235

Slide 2

Nature Poetry of Romantic Period
Treats rustic/natural subject matter with high seriousness
Antithetical to Enlightenment emphasis on human civilization
Rooted in 17th and 18th century art, landscaping, and tourism

Landscape Painting

Slide 5

Slide 6

Slide 7

Slide 8

Landscaping and Gardening

Slide 10

Slide 11

Tourism

Slide 13

Romantic Aesthetics
Beautiful
Calm, soothing, pleasant, secure
Sublime
Awe-inspiring, mysterious, terrible, infinite/eternal

Slide 15

“Tintern Abbey”

What features of the natural landscape does the speaker describe?
“Beautiful” features
Line 4— “soft inland murmur”
Line 8— “quiet of the sky”

What features of the natural landscape does the speaker describe?
“Beautiful” features
Lines 10-14— speaker “reposes” in an orchard on “cottage plots”
Line 16— “pastoral farms”

What features of the natural landscape does the speaker describe?
“Sublime” features
Line 3—“rolling from their mountain springs”
Lines 5-8— “steep and lofty cliffs” of the “wild secluded scene”

What features of the natural landscape does the speaker describe?
“Sublime” features
Line 14— orchard trees “lose themselves ’Mid groves and copses”
Line 16— hedgerows are “sportive” and “run wild”

What features of the natural landscape does the speaker describe?
“Sublime” features
Line 17— “wreaths of smoke . . . among the trees”

Who is the speaker of the poem?
Persona who narrates the poem
Wordsworth himself
Meditates on personal experience as tourist
Examines emotional impact of memories of Tintern Abbey

How did memories of nature affect the speaker?
“Beautiful” effects
Lines 22-30—Provided emotional comfort and tranquility
Antidote to the “din” of urban settings

How did memories of nature affect the speaker?
“Beautiful” effects
Lines 30-35—Built moral character
Inspired “acts of kindness and of love”

How did memories of nature affect the speaker?
“Sublime” effects
Lines 35-45—Gave insight into spiritual meaning of life
We “become a living soul” and “see into the life of things”

What is the speaker’s transformation?
Lines 58-93—Speaker traces transformation
“Boyish days”—thoughtless enjoyment of nature
Maturity—recognizes nature’s moral and spiritual power

Who is the speaker’s companion?
Lines 114-115—Speaker addresses companion
His “dearest friend”
His younger sister, Dorothy Wordsworth

What does the speaker see in his companion’s response to nature?
Lines 116-121—Speaker analyzes companion’s response
Image of his former youthful self
Future repetition of his relationship to nature

What does the speaker see in his companion’s response to nature?
Lines 121-conclusion—Speaker predicts companion’s future relationship to nature
Memories of nature will sustain her in times of trouble

What is the relationship of humanity to nature?
Humanity’s perception of nature provides
Comfort
Moral guidance
Spiritual insight