Jonathan Wordsworth (1932–2006)

A marvelous and all-encompassing anthology. Compiled by Romantic era scholar (and poet's descendant) Jonathan Wordsworth and his academic wife Jessica, this seems to me one of the most comprehensive introductory tomes on Romantic poetry.

The poems are arranged neither chronologically nor by author but instead by subject, allowing the editors to present to us explorations of the poems in conversation, attempting to create a sense of the role these pieces played in the popular (if not always mainstream) culture of the time. The endnotes are fairly extensive to ensure that there are very few issues of clarity for readers, regardless of their background. And the size of the book (around 1,000 pages in paperback, and densely typed) ensures that there's a lot of odes for one's buck.

There are just two notes I would make. The first is that the Wordsworths are content to include minor poems - and even sometimes clear ephemera - in an attempt to present the entire era. This is admirable and, I would argue, correct, but it does lend a slight manic air at times when we fly from one of Keats' greatest hits to an obscure female author writing in a different vein to some doggerel by Scott and on to something else entirely. The second is that I rather wish each section were preceded by a longer essay. While there are rather short biographies of each poet in the back of the book, and the introduction competently lays out the purpose of this edition, this does not have the (for example) Norton Anthology's sense of wonder and historical understanding. Instead - deliberately - the authors seek to throw you into this volume much as if it were an anthology of contemporary poets. Savour the experience, they say, and look things up in another volume if you wish for more understanding. I don't think it's an issue, but it perhaps prevents this from being an eternal masterpiece, merely reducing it to an exceptionally good tome.… (mere)

Thus far am pleased with the poems being ordered by themes, the preface and introductions to anthologies teach me different viewpoints of what Romantic Poetry is. I once thought it just exaggerated love expressions, but now, after reading over the past three years, the Romantics, I realized that is not just about eros. Romantic can be a historical poem too. This helps me to research the period or event that the author was giving his personal emotional word expression to, understand and learning takes place. Highly recommend for family reading selections.… (mere)