Introduction

Lyrical Ballads is a collection of poems which is written by two great poets of their time William Wordsworth ; Samuel Taylor Coleridge, its first edition was first published in the 1798. The most of the poems in Lyrical ballads were written by Wordsworth, four poems were contibuted by Coleridge including his most famous poem "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner". The lyrical ballad is said to have begun the movement of romanticism in english poetry, the basic idea was to take the art of poetry into the reach of common people, in aspect of language and feelings. Its Second Edition was published in 1800, contains some more poems by wordsworth, in this edition Wordsworth also added a preface in which he discribed his thoughts and understanding on poetry. The Lyrical Ballads holds a very important place in english literature, as it significantly tried to change the course of English Poetry and made it to be easily understood by common people. Here I am posting both the 1st and the 2nd edition of Lyrical Ballads, which are freely available on many places on internet. This blog is my tribute to the William Wordsworth and his Lyrical Ballads.

Inscription For The Spot Where The Hermitage Stood On St. Herbert's Island, Derwent-Water

If thou in the dear love of some one friend
Hast been so happy, that thou know'st what thoughts
Will, sometimes, in the happiness of love
Make the heart sink, then wilt thou reverence
This quiet spot.--St. Herbert hither came
And here, for many seasons, from the world
Remov'd, and the affections of the world
He dwelt in solitude. He living here,
This island's sole inhabitant! had left
A Fellow-labourer, whom the good Man lov'd
As his own soul; and when within his cave
Alone he knelt before the crucifix
While o'er the lake the cataract of Lodore
Peal'd to his orisons, and when he pac'd
Along the beach of this small isle and thought
Of his Companion, he had pray'd that both
Might die in the same moment. Nor in vain
So pray'd he:--as our Chronicles report,
Though here the Hermit number'd his last days,
Far from St. Cuthbert his beloved friend,
Those holy men both died in the same hour.

Posted by Atul Awasthi

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