Lyrical Ballads facts for kids

Title page of the first edition.

Lyrical Ballads, with a Few Other Poems is a very important collection of poems. It was written by two famous poets, William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. The book was first published in 1798. Many people believe it marked the start of the English Romantic movement in literature.

At first, critics didn't pay much attention to it. But over time, it became a landmark book. It completely changed the way English literature and poetry were written. The edition published in 1800 is famous for its Preface to the Lyrical Ballads. This part is often called the "manifesto" of Romanticism. It explained the new ideas behind the poems.

Most of the poems in the 1798 book were written by Wordsworth. Coleridge only wrote four poems for the collection. However, these four poems made up about a third of the book's total length. One of Coleridge's most famous poems, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, was included.

A second edition of the book came out in 1800. Wordsworth added more poems to this one. He also included a preface that explained their ideas about poetry. For another edition in 1802, Wordsworth added an appendix called Poetic Diction. This expanded on the ideas from the preface. A third edition was published in 1802, and a fourth in 1805.

What is Lyrical Ballads About?

Wordsworth and Coleridge wanted to change poetry. They felt that 18th-century English poetry was too formal and difficult. They wanted to make poetry easier for everyone to understand. Their goal was to use everyday language, like how people actually talk.

These poets wanted to show the power of the language used by ordinary people. They believed this language could express deep human feelings. The book's title itself hints at this idea. "Lyrical" connects the poems to old storytellers and suggests they are spontaneous. "Ballads" are a type of story often told by common people.

In the 1798 edition, Wordsworth explained his idea for the poems. He wrote:

The majority of the following poems are to be considered as experiments. They were written chiefly with a view to ascertain how far the language of conversation in the middle and lower classes of society is adapted to the purpose of poetic pleasure.

This meant they were trying out new ways of writing. They wanted to see if everyday language could be used for beautiful poetry.

Using common language was a big change. But they also focused on simple country people as the subjects of their poems. This was a huge shift in modern literature. It meant that ordinary lives could be important in poetry.

One main idea in "Lyrical Ballads" is going back to nature. The poets believed people were purer when living closer to nature. Wordsworth agreed with Rousseau that humans are good by nature. Society, he thought, often makes people less good. This idea was popular in Europe around the time of the French Revolution.

Poems in the First Edition (1798)

The first edition of Lyrical Ballads in 1798 had 23 poems. William Wordsworth wrote 19 of them. Samuel Taylor Coleridge wrote four poems.

Some of the well-known poems from this edition include:

• The Rime of the Ancyent Marinere (Coleridge)
• We are seven (Wordsworth)
• The Idiot Boy (Wordsworth)
• Lines written a few miles above Tintern Abbey (Wordsworth)

Poems in the Second Edition (1800)

The second edition of Lyrical Ballads came out in 1800. It included many new poems. This edition was split into two volumes.

Volume I (1800)

This volume contained many poems from the first edition. It also included some new ones. Coleridge's famous poem, "Love", was added to this volume.

Some poems in Volume I:

• Expostulation and Reply (Wordsworth)
• The Tables Turned; an Evening Scene, on the Same Subject (Wordsworth)
• The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (Coleridge)
• Lines Written Above Tintern Abbey (Wordsworth)

Volume II (1800)

This volume was entirely new for the 1800 edition. It featured many more poems by Wordsworth.

Some poems in Volume II:

• Hart-Leap Well (Wordsworth)
• She Dwelt Among the Untrodden Ways (Wordsworth)
• Lucy Gray (Wordsworth)
• Michael, a Pastoral (Wordsworth)

The poem The Convict by Wordsworth was in the 1798 edition. However, Wordsworth removed it from the 1800 edition. He replaced it with Coleridge's poem "Love".