A Few Words about
Wordsworth
Wordsworth, The Romantics and Tintern Abbey.
A young Wordsworth visits Tintern on a walking holiday
His visit is in in unhappy circumstances. He has had a bad experience in France at the start of the Revolution, and has had to leave a baby and common law wife in France as he left to save his life.
During the following 5 years his confidence and stature has grown. He is independent after publishing his first book of poetry. He and Coleridge are friends and at the forefront of the Romantic Movement.
He finds himself again at Tintern, this time with his beloved sister Dorothy on a walking holiday. Their walking holiday allows them to look at nature with a new perspective.
It also allows Wordsworth to look at himself now and as he was five years before. He is able to express himself in the form of his famous poem, Lines Composed A Few Miles Above Tintern.
At the same time the travel industry was developing with guided tours and guidebooks. Tintern was becoming a popular excursion destination. Turner, the famous painter was also making the location famous.
Come and listen to Wordsworth talk about his life and about the Romantic movement.
Simon, speaking as Wordsworth describes what places like Tintern mean to the Romantic movement.
Hear how they came to be so popular with poets, and artists and the tourists.