W illiam W ordsworth
Ⅰ．Brief Introduction to the Poet
1．Life Story
William Wordsworth is the representative poet of the early romanticism．He was born into a lawyer's family in 1770 in Cockermouth，Cumberland，in the Lake District of northwestern England．Hismother died when he was only 8．His father died 6 years later．The orphan was taken in charge by relatives．He was sent to school at Hawkshead in the beautiful Lake District，near his birthplace，where he developed a strong love of nature．The unroofed school of nature attracted him more than the classroom，and he learned more eagerly from flowers and hills and stars than from his books．So the child early cherished a love of nature，which he later expressed in his poetry．
He studied at Cambridge from 1787 to 1791．While at university，he associated with those Republicans whose political enthusiasm had been roused by the French Revolution．In the summer of 1790 he took a walking tour through France at the time when the French were joyously celebrating the first anniversary of the fall of the Bastille．He was deeply influenced by the French Revolution with its slogans of“liberty，brotherhood，and equality”．On his second visit he became acquainted with Beaupuy，an army officer of the new-born Republic of France，who roused the heartof the young English man with a spirit of revolt against all social evils and injustice and a sympathy for the poor，humble people．Wordsworth joined the Republicans，but he was forced to return to England because his relatives cut off his allowance．There in France he had a love affair with Annette Vallon who born him a daughter．
In 1793 the British declared awar against France．Hewas disappointed with the outbreak of hostilities between France and Britain．Wordsworth remained sympathetic to the French cause．But in the following years when he saw the radicalmembers were terrible and French started to invade other European countries，Wordsworth's desire for liberty had been swallowed by the desire for empire，and he was completely disillusioned，and gradually changed into a conservative in politics．However the influence of his early experience of wild nature was still there．
Without a regular job，Wordsworth had always run into financial difficulties．In 1795Wordsworth received a legacy from a friend of his，which enabled him to lead the life of a poet．He then settled down with his sister in his native Lake District．In 1797Wordsworth met Coleridge，and the two poets became very good friends．A close and long-standing friendship developed between them．Together they published Lyrical Ballads，which marked the end of the neoclassical period and the beginning of the Romanticism in English poetry．
Wordsworth and his sistermade a trip to Germany in 1798 and 1799．When they returned to England，they settled down at the loveliest spot in England，Lake District．The poet Robert Southey as well as Coleridge lived by，and the three walked through the same path in politics and in poetry，beginning as radical and closing as conservatives．Later they became known as the“Lake Poets”．
In 1802Wordsworth married Mary，whom he had known since childhood．In 1813 he was appointed Stamp Distributor(revenue collector)for the country of Westmorland with a substantial income．After his resignation from that office he received a government pension．As he became old，Wordsworth's poetic vision and inspiration dulled．His later poems cannotbe compared to the lyrics of his youth．In 1843，he succeeded Robert Southey as Poet Laureate．He died in 1850，at the age of 80．
2．Literary Career
Wordsworth had a long poetic career and turned outmany volumes of poetry，buthismajor poemswerewritten all in the last decades of the 18th century and the first quarter of the 19th century．
In 1798Wordsworth and Coleridge published hismajor volume of poetry，entitled Lyrical Ballads．The poetry at first was not well received by the public．A second edition appeared in 1800 with an important Preface affixed to it and excited some hostility from the critics．But years later the poems became welcomed not only in England，but in thewholeWestern world as an epic-making book in English history．
The publication of the Lyrical Ballads marked the break with the conventional poetic tradition of the 18th century，i．e．，with Classicism，and the beginning of the Romantic revival in England．In the Preface to the second edition of the Lyrical Ballads Wordsworth set forth his principles of poetry．He based his poetical principles on the premise that“All good poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feeling．”ThismadeWordsworth's poetry quite different from the classicists who emphasized reason，order and the old，classical traditions in their poetry writing．Guided by his principle，Wordsworth appealed directly on individual sensations，such as pleasure，excitement and enjoyment as the foundation in the creation and appreciation of poetry．A poet's emotion extends from human affairs to nature．Tranquil contemplation of an emotional experiencematures the feelings and sensation，and makes possible the creation of good poetry．According to him，a poet's emotion extends from human affairs to nature，but emotion immediately expressed is as raw aswine newly bottled．Calmly deep thought of an emotional experiencematures the feeling and sensation，and makes possible the creation of good poetry like the refining of old wine．
He further points out that the function of poetry lies in its power to give an unexpected splendour to familiar and common things，and to incidents and situations from common life just as a prism can give a ray of commonplace sunlight the manifold miracle of color．Thus ordinary peasants，children，even outcasts allmay be used as subjects in poetic creation．As to the language used in poetry，Wordsworth“tried to bring his language near to be real language of men”to a state of vivid sensation．Thus his language is distinguish-ed by the simplicity and purity．The language spoken by the peasants，which is less under the influence of social vanity，conveys their feelings and emotions in simple and unelaborated expressions．Wordsworth's poetic creation hinted his dissatisfaction with the social reality under capitalism，and embodied his thought of“back to nature”and“back to the patriarchal system of the old time”．These principles helped to break the theoretical foundations of the classical school of English poetry and to inspire a new generation of poets．The Preface to the Lyrical Ballads served as themanifesto of the English Romantic Movement in poetry．The Prelude，which began in the 1790s and was completed in 1805，published after the death of Wordsworth．Many critics regarded it as Wordsworth's greatestwork．
Wordsworth lived a long life and wrote a lot of poems．According to the subjects，his short poems can be classified into two groups:poems aboutnature and poems abouthuman life．Hewas at his best in descriptions ofmountains and rivers，flowers and birds，children and peasants，and recollections of his own childhood and youth．As a great poet of nature，he was the first to find words for themost basic sensations ofman face to facewith natural phenomena．These sensations are universal and old，but once expressed in his poetry，became charmingly beautiful and new．His deep love for nature was through such short lyrics as LinesWritten in Early Morning，To the Cuckoo，IWandered Lonely asa Cloud，My Heart Leaps Up，Intimations of Immortality and Lines Composed a Few Miles A-bove Tintern Abbey，among which the last is called“lyrical hymn of thanks to nature”．Whenever he wrote a poem he would store up natural impressions and“thought long and deeply before reproducing them in poetry”．There was a comment by George Brandes，“He collects a winter store of bright summermoment．”
His“Lucy”poems are a series of short lyrics on the theme of harmony between humanity and nature．The poems deal with the simple rural folk whom the poetwas familiar with as a result of his long stay in the Lake District．All five of which describe with rare elusive beauty of simple lyricism and haunting rhythm the lowly country girl leading their simple life far away from civilization．
Most of the poemswerewritten when the poet visited some scenic spots or places of historical interest，very much in the same spirit ofmany old Chinese poems，which were also written on specific occasions by poets in the Tang and the Song Dynasties，which usually either expressing admiration or appreciation of the beautiful scenery or expressing sorrow of human existence in connection with deep thoughts on certain historical figures and events．
Wordsworth was also amaster hand in searching and revealing the feelings of the common people．Themostoutstanding is The Solitary Reaper．Though Wordsworth himself didn't see the reaper，he learnt something about the reaper from his friend Thomas Wilkinson's Tour of Scotland．The poem is an admirable poem about a simple peasantmaiden who obviously enjoys her labor and whose plaintive song leaves strong and lasting impression upon the chance listener．Especially effective is the poet's stretch of his imagination tomake up for his ignorance of the girl's Gaelic words in the song． The very fact that this poem is not the result of the poet's own eyewitness account but rather that of his imagination speaksmore loudly than otherwise of Wordsworth's true sympathy and admiration for the simple laboring peasant folk，and the use of simple words in beautiful lyricism adds to the charm of his short poem．
3．Theme of His Poetry
Two ofWordsworth'smajor themes are nature，life and feelings of common people．Wordsworth wrote many poems about nature in which he reveals his genuine love for the natural beauty which can release him out of the solitude and sorrow when he is sad and lonely．To Wordsworth nature acts as a substitute for imaginative and intellectual engagement with the development of embodied human beings in their diverse circumstances．It is nature that gives him“strength and knowledge full of peace”．Wordsworth can penetrate to the core of things and give the readers the very life of nature thus he is regarded as a“worshipper of nature”．Apart from the pleasures of picturesquenesswith their emphasis on the eye and the external aspect of nature，the poems lie amoral awareness as he is aware of his own sublime communion with all things．Nature has become an inspiring force of rapture and a power that reveals the working of the soul．
The theme ofmany of his poems come from rural life and his characters belong to the lower classes in English countryside．This is so because he was familiar with rural life and he believed that in rural conditionsman's basic feelings find a better soil than in town life and can be better cultivated and strengthened in his constant as-sociation with nature．Deep-rooted in his native soil，Wordsworth succeeded in drawing pictures of the laboring people，in describing the native，simple peasant，children and in showing deep sympathy to the sufferings of the poor，humble peasants．
4．Literary Achievement
William Wordsworth is the leading figure of the English romantic poetry and hisworks is the poetic voice of the period．His poems is a voice of searching comprehensive humanity and one that inspires his audience to see the world freshly，sympathetically and naturally．The most important contribution he hasmade is that he has notonly started themodern poetry，the poetry of the growing inner self，but also changed the course of English poetry by using ordinary speech of the language and by advocating a return to nature．
Wordsworth argues that poetry should be written in the natural language of common speech，rather than in the lofty and elaborate dictions thatwere then considered“poetic”．He argues that poetry should offer access to the emotions contained in memory．And he also argues that the first principle of poetry should be pleasure，that the chief duty of poetry is to provide pleasure through a rhythmic and beautiful expression of feeling——for all human sympathy，he claims，is based on a subtle pleasure principle that is“the naked and native dignity ofman．”
Wordsworth's poems initiated the Romantic era by emphasizing feeling，instinct，and pleasure above formality and mannerism．More than any poet before him，Wordsworth gave expression to inchoate human emotion．
Ⅱ．Brief Introduction to the Selected Literary Work
The Prelude
1．Brief Summary of the Poem
The Prelude isWordsworth'smost famous work，which is considered bymany to be the crowning achievementof English romanticism．The poem，revised numerous times，chronicles the spiritual life of the poet and marks the birth of a new genre of poetry．The poem is an autobiographical，“philosophical”poem in blank verse．It is a portrait of the artist and a unique study of the influences that contributed to his development as a poet．In the poet's own words he set out“to record，in verse，the origin and progress of his own powers，as far as hewas acquainted with them．”Wordsworth wrote the first version of the poem when he was 28，and worked over for the rest of his long life without publishing it．He never gave it a title．He called it the“Poem(title not yet fixed upon)to Coleridge”and in his letters to Dorothy Wordsworth as“The poem on the growth of my own mind”．The poem was unknown to the general public until published three months after Wordswoth's demise in 1850，the final name given to it by hiswife．
This spiritual autobiography embodiesWordsworth's philosophy of life．ToWordsworth，life is a cyclical journey，in which its beginning turns out to be its end．That is to say the end of a circular journey is“to arrivewherewe started/And know that place for the first time．”This poetic work opens with a literary journey whose goal is to return to the Vale of Grasmere．The journey goes through the poet's personal history，carrying themetaphoricalmeaning of his interior journey and questing for his lost early self and the proper spiritual home．It charts this growth from infancy tomanhood．The development of human consciousness under the sway of an imagination united to the grandeur of nature find reflection in the poem．In the later books of The Prelude the poet describes his experiences in France:his republicanism，his affair with Annette Vallon，his“substantial dread”during the terror and his continuing support of the ideals underlying the Revolution．The concluding description of the ascent of Snowdon became a symbol of the poet's climb to the height of his inspired powers and to that state of vision in which，dedicating himself to humanity，he becomes one of the“Prophets of nature”．
2．Theme of the Poem
According to Wordsworth，it is his intention to demonstrate that these lines introduce and define the theme of the growth of the poetic Imagination．In the poem the poet celebrates his release from the burden of city cares and his joyful return to nature．The principal subject of the lyric is ostensibly the freedom and liberty of the poet in Nature．
Ⅲ．Latest Critical Commentary
华兹华斯是19世纪诗坛的一颗巨星，是19世纪英国浪漫主义的主要奠基者，他创作了大量诗篇，为英国诗坛展现出一道亮丽美景。华兹华斯清新、质朴、自然的语言开创了一个崭新的诗歌时代，冲破了18世纪新古典主义用“诗歌语言”描写贵族生活的桎梏，为诗歌创作开拓了广阔的天地，开创了诗歌口语化、大众化的道路。他是一位承前启后、继往开来的伟大诗人。在华兹华斯的作品中《序曲》是华兹华斯创作的最有成就的一部长诗，可以将其视为具有史诗特点的自传性长诗。全诗共14卷，具有庞大的气势，华兹华斯在1798年着手创作，直到1805年才形成13卷的规模。以后又经过多次修改，到1831年左右扩充为14卷。整部诗直到诗人去世时才最终付梓。可以说华兹华斯对于《序曲》的创作是倾尽了毕生精力。整部诗实际上是作者对青年时代生活的回顾和反思，因此具有自传的特点。同时，因为诗作充分反映了作者对于人生和社会的深层思考，因此它具有启示录的意义。
早在20世纪初，华兹华斯就被译介到中国，但是，由于他那些描绘自然的诗与20世纪前半叶的中国国情相差甚远，未能同当时的国人达到精神上的会通和契合。自1950年以来，由于受到高尔基将浪漫主义划分为积极和消极两大派别这一影响，华兹华斯一直被我国学者贬为消极浪漫主义，甚至反动浪漫主义诗人的代表。这样1950年代至1970年代的近三十年间，我国的华兹华斯研究多呈批判式甚至攻击式的、表层的、随感的印象型介绍性研究。1980年代至今，华兹华斯的新形象和诗歌成就在一些研究者心中得到充分肯定。但一些学者仍将华兹华斯划为消极的或逃避的浪漫主义诗人。研究者还普遍认为，华兹华斯留恋宗法制的农村生活、反对工业文明是落后的，对法国大革命态度的转变是反动的。(苏文菁，1993)近年来国内对于《序曲》的研究还不是很多，要对这样一部宏大的史诗进行充分的挖掘，确实有难度。但可喜的是，1999年国内出现了第一个《序曲》的全译本，译者为北京大学的丁宏为先生，文前加了译者序。这个译本和译者序，以及丁宏为先生在2002年新出的一本研究华诗的专著《理念与悲曲》，对于今后《序曲》的深入研究有借鉴意义。学者们关于华兹华斯及其《序曲》的研究可以分为以下几个方面:华兹华斯诗歌语言观、华兹华斯的自然观研究、华兹华斯的儿童观研究、华兹华斯的死亡意识、华兹华斯的想象观、华兹华斯的诗论研究和华兹华斯与中国诗人对比研究等。
华兹华斯诗歌语言观研究
华兹华斯是第一个运用朴实无华的语言来传达人与自然之感情的交融的，这些情感一旦通过他的诗歌的表达，令人耳目一新。华兹华斯诗歌语言的创新性就在于，它吸收了人民群众语言和英语语言的精华。他的诗歌语言的简朴性创造出了一种更清醇、更富有深意的诗歌，这种诗歌创作是前所未有的。还有学者赞同华兹华斯诗学中具有的革命性的诗歌语言观。(王贵明、康珊，2003)因为华兹华斯改革诗歌语言的前提是，以前的诗人们写诗不是写给大多数人看的，诗里表达的内容和使用的语言也严重脱离了劳动人民。在华兹华斯看来，诗歌创作的两大要素，一是忠实于大自然的真实以唤起读者同情的能力，二是借助于想象的色彩变化以新颖异常去引人入胜的能力。偶然的光和影、月色或夕照所赋予司空见惯的寻常景物的魅力，似乎可以表明把这两种能力结合起来是可以做到的，这些就是大自然的诗意，这些，才是值得加以复制的。华兹华斯的创新点就在于他能够运用简朴的语言恰到好处地传达这种大自然的诗意。华兹华斯的诗歌语言的创新性的另一个表现形式是他在诗歌题材的选择上，在他的诗歌中用朴实的语言记录了这些人的情感和经历，揭示了不平等的法律，他同情普通人民，反对掠夺性质的战争。有评论家认为华兹华斯建立的独具特色的诗歌体系在文学上等同于法国革命，他把政治变革引入到了诗歌创作中。(王春，2004)
学者们在研究中指出华兹华斯诗歌语言观具有超前性，主要体现在两个方面:一、对诗歌创作中语言的局限性与逆向作用的认识;二、对诗歌创作中感觉与思维的辩证关系的思考。(严忠志，2000)在前者中诗人认为，人们在使用语言符号的同时也被语言符号所限制，在此华氏提出了两个值得思考的问题:其一，人类语言的局限性使诗人无法找到恰当的语汇对其进行命名;其二“想象力”在诗歌创作中是一种“可怕的力量”。想象力同人的情感和道德本性相连，与分析理性无关，想象力是神圣的，是诗人充满神秘色彩的个人经历的核心部分，舍此便不能进行诗歌创作。华氏思路超前性就在于引入了“语言的内在局限性”这一重要观点。所谓诗人的“功力欠佳”其实是想象力超越了语言能力的限度，使其不能充分加以表达。这是语言内在缺陷所致，是诗歌这一艺术形式自身的特点之一。华兹华斯的这一看法与乔姆斯基关于语言能力和语言行为的理论几乎有异曲同工之妙，对20世纪文论关于文学话语的讨论具有不可低估的借鉴意义。在后者中华兹华斯认为一方面诗歌中要使用描写自然的语言，从而强调了感性认识的首要地位;另一方面，他认为诗歌中还应有表达沉思的语言，以此肯定理性认识的重要作用。第一种语言的使用者往往与自然是融为一体的，以文化水准不高的女性居多。其特点是清晰明了，罕见岐义，句法简单，变化不多。第二种的使用者则具有独立于自然的自我意识，往往为受过良好教育的男性。其语义具有多向性，受语境的制约较大，句法复杂，富于变化。在诗歌创作过程中感性语言与表达沉思的语言二者之间的关系首先是感性语言，它是表达沉思语言的基础。沉思需要推理及道德方面的术语，而这些术语同感性语言中的具体事物的名称相联系。于是，有关自然的概念便可成为表示反思、推理和道德这类概念的支点;感性语言便可使表示这些抽象概念的语言相对稳定下来。另外华兹华斯认为，感情语言与表达沉思的语言可以相互转化。华兹华斯诗歌美学在很大程度上是要教会人们在日常的事件中学会感悟，同时在感悟的过程中感受美。
也有学者提出华兹华斯的语言有隐喻的意义。(罗益民，2004)在他们看来华兹华斯的诗歌语言观具有原始主义的倾向，像其他原始作家一样，他以自然为关注的对象，这样心灵接近自然，因而也就比较接近神。华兹华斯的语言的隐喻标志着他有意无意地在从语言这个方面为他诗歌其他方面的目的服务。也就是说，有关语言的隐喻说明，人的灵魂是向上和向善的，是想通过正如自然一样的媒介走向至善、至美的上帝和天国的。
在诗歌形式与体裁上，诗人呈现出了形式多样的浪漫主义诗歌，韵律平稳、舒展、灵活多样。他的许多诗都采用了素体无韵体的比较自由的歌谣双韵体，摒弃了18世纪统治英国诗坛的“戴着镣铐跳舞”的英雄双韵体，赋予素体诗和十四行诗新的生命和活力，并且开创了自我剖析的自传体诗歌体裁。华兹华斯永久性地扩大了英国诗歌的题材范围，他的关于诗歌的革命使他通过重新发现“活的语言”而使人们富有创造性的感受力变得生动起来，这种革命的意义是巨大的、带有冲击性的。华兹华斯创造的诗歌语言的理论以及他所获得的这些高度评价，足以证明诗人本身及其诗歌理论在英国文坛上的重要地位。
华兹华斯的自然观
华兹华斯的童年时代是在新英格兰西北部的湖区度过的，童年时代的这一段田园牧歌式的生活，对诗人以后自然观的形成产生了深刻的影响，少年时期的他已经感受到“山林、岩石和树林”的不寻常的影响。大自然的壮丽景色给他青少年时期留下了强烈的印象。成年后，他以饱蘸感情的诗笔咏赞大自然，讴歌自然界中的山水风景、田园乡土、花木鸟虫、日月星辰对人类心灵的影响。在自然与上帝、自然与人生、自然与童年的关系上，他以诗的形式表述了一整套新颖独特的哲理，希冀童年时天真纯洁的心灵永驻。在诗人看来，大自然有取之不尽的财富，可以丰富人类的感情与理智。自然界中最卑微之物皆有灵魂，而且它们是同整个宇宙的大灵魂合为一体的，此乃诗人天人合一自然观的主旨。人类只有在大自然中才能保持自己的尊严和纯洁的心灵，才能与束缚自由、压抑个性的工业社会抗争。因此，诗人将自己的情思寄于大自然的湖光山色之中，以诗笔表现自己对理想的追求，而不是隐居，也不是脱离社会之外，更不是反对工业文明，而是反对压抑人性的社会——工业社会。诗人以平静的目光观察社会、思考人生，不时流露出追求崇高信念和向往理想境界的心态。华兹华斯是一位基督教诗人，对自然的咏唱是他的诗歌的核心主题。基督教认为人处于与神性对立的物质世界里，自从人类犯下原罪，上帝的圣恩就更多地赋予于大自然之中。因此在华兹华斯眼里，亲近自然也就是接近上帝。于是华兹华斯选择回归自然，祈望在大自然中找到人类精神的归宿。借助诗歌的形式，他于无情中传达着有情，于伤感中透露着喜悦。(朱芳，2007)
关于华兹华斯对自然的认识这个问题上，还有学者认为华兹华斯的自然观是蕴涵着矛盾的自然观。神性追求与人生悲苦的不协调，拯救自然人性与社会现实不相容以及对待死亡的双重心理，这些在华兹华斯诗歌中都有充分的表现，华兹华斯的自然观预示了现代人的生存困境。(杨金梅，2004)华兹华斯的自然观是理想的自然观。一方面他希望在自然中探求生活的真谛，寻找解决人生问题的途径。在诗人眼里，自然是有感情、有灵性的，自然可以陶冶心灵，提升道德，可以恢复人类完美的人性。通过自然，人类可以触摸灵魂的存在，享浴上帝恩泽，可以重返“黄金时代”，再造精神家园。另一方面华兹华斯的自然观同时又蕴涵着一系列矛盾。诗人想把自己完全融入自然，试图把握自然的脉动，却又时时感到自然的不稳定性。他在虔信自然拯救人类的功能，并试图通过自然在人与神之间构架桥梁的同时，却又流露出对自然权威的恐惧和对宇宙精神的怀疑。这种矛盾的心态像一股潜流，渗透在华兹华斯的诗歌中，让诗人时常感到一种焦虑、失落甚至绝望。这样他所写的诗歌在对自然及“自然人”竭尽赞美的同时，也都流露出他面对自然时矛盾的心态。这种矛盾心态主要表现在三个方面:神性追求与人生悲苦的不协调，拯救自然人的理想与社会现实的矛盾和看待死亡的双重心理。诗人这种理想与现实之间的矛盾事实上也是人与自然之间矛盾的反映。
也有学者在研究中指出，华兹华斯笔下的自然具有隐喻的意思。学者们认为在华兹华斯的笔下，自然是接近上帝的存在，是上帝的作品。自然是与人世相对的山水田野。人深深眷恋的自然，也就是对自己身上神性思念的拳拳之心。对自然的歌咏成为对上帝的第一作品——自然的追忆。华兹华斯把与自然的亲近看成是灵魂的拯救。(罗益民，2004)还有学者认为华兹华斯诗歌中的大自然就是人类曾失去的伊甸园，是人类的精神乐园，人类在物质利益的驱使下忘记了从大自然那里去获取精神上的教益，而人对大自然的漠视与侵犯是人类自身的一种精神堕落。有学者指出《序曲》中所回忆和描述的心灵成长过程与基督教的迂回拯救一样，也呈现出蜿蜒曲转、最终又复归原处的特点。(张宏峰，2003)华兹华斯在《序曲》中所展示的是自己心灵在成长过程中所经历的:收益与损失、欢畅和痛苦、秩序与混乱、清醒和迷茫。所有这一切都为心灵提供了必需的滋养与磨砺，使其最终“达到完满”。虽然人类心灵距上帝的神性时近时远，然而人类却从未离开过上帝的慈爱和拯救。华兹华斯力图用上帝的神性将人类与大自然之间存在的裂缝弥合起来，以劝导人们回归大自然、崇拜大自然、求教于大自然，在大自然中找回曾经失去的纯真与质朴，从而达到物我合一的境界。事实上上述观点其实也体现了华兹华斯的拯救思想。
华兹华斯的儿童观
华兹华斯通过对儿童的关注和赞美，表达了这样一个惊世骇俗的洞见，即“儿童是成年人的父亲”，对童年备加崇敬。(陈才忆，2003)华兹华斯认为，首先，儿童从天国而来，带有天国的灵光，天真无邪，童年是人一生中最纯真的快乐时光。成年人通过追寻逝去的童年，必能找回欢乐。其次，儿童的想像力最为活跃，可随着年岁的增长，人的想像力逐渐衰退。华兹华斯本人就感到“功力欠佳”，但他凭借“内在的眼睛”，或者“灵视”，也就是靠记忆加想像，追忆曾经有过的经历，既获得了愉快的心情，也更加走向思想的成熟，因此人若能保持童年时期活跃的想像力，就是保住了永远的快乐。再者，儿童能凭直觉看待问题，显示出儿童的睿智，这是成年人所不及的，成年人应该向儿童学习，从这点上来说，儿童算得上是成年人的父亲。最后，华兹华斯呼吁不要用缺点重重的人类知识去摧残儿童的神圣本性，保持了童年的纯真，也就留住了永远的欢乐。华兹华斯之所以在诗作中竭力赞美儿童的美好品质，是因为这些东西是人们随着年岁的增长而逐渐失去的东西，也是人们一辈子努力想要追寻和找回的东西。力争返回天国，就会获得欢愉，使人生的终点与起点相接，最终将获得永恒。
学者罗益民(2004)在研究中指出童年的隐喻意义在于华兹华斯提出的儿童是成人的父的观点是他基督教思想的核心内容。因为儿童具有类似自然的纯净的心灵，所以华兹华斯把拯救人类灵魂的希望寄寓于儿童。除此之外华兹华斯相当重视普通人，因为普通的人在物欲方面没有得到很好的满足，他们与其他物质性很重的人相比也就离纯朴的自然更近。在他们身上，都具有儿童纯洁无邪的属性，因而更能代表上帝的恩泽和光辉。
华兹华斯的死亡意识
有学者认为华兹华斯的众多诗篇中隐隐约约的流露出诗人独有的死亡意识。随着诗人生活经历的变化，诗人的这一意识也在发生着微妙的变化。而建立在对比之上、以时间为基点、把人放入永恒的大自然之中则是诗人这一意识能够以隐晦方式表达的基本特征。华兹华斯无法把生和死看成是自然的事，不可能达到“生不足喜，死不足哀”的境界。但是，华兹华斯的死亡意识同样是他对人生价值认真探索、对生活经验进行总结以及个性特征流露等因素的综合体现，就其艺术价值和美学价值而言，诗人能够成功地将熟悉的人物形象放入永恒的、有神性的大自然当中，以克制的、隐晦的方式对死亡进行艺术处理，巧妙地表现和升华诗人复杂的情感，有效地表达诗人的思想观念，将其思想情感与自然融成一体，这正是诗人的独创和伟大之处。(白锡汉，2000)而形成诗人死亡意识的原因在于华兹华斯的生活经历和内心思想感受。一方面，他感觉到生命的短暂和死亡的凄凉、死亡的无常。另一方面，他又认识到死亡的不可抗拒性和客观存在性。但他不敢正视死亡，无法把死看成是生命的延续，或生和死是一个连续体，因而他只是怯弱惶恐地回避和眺望死亡。从他一生的经历来看，他的这种死亡意识是他希望在自然中探索生命真谛，解决社会问题的同时，内心深处感受和体验的结果，是他心灵承受精神重压的产物，并且贯穿他中后期的整个诗歌创作。没有这一意识，他对人生的探索就不可能如此透彻，其创作也不可能形成如此完整的体系。
还有学者研究艾布拉姆斯提出的华兹华斯的诗歌具有现代性的特点。他们认为华兹华斯诗歌中弥漫着的孤独、死亡、苦闷、焦虑、悲观的情绪，体现出诗人敏锐地感觉到了现代社会存在的问题，充满了生存的不确定感，从而使他的诗具有悲观的现代情绪。除此之外，学者们还指出诗人诗中的现代性特征还表现在情与理的交融和精神顿悟的“时间之点”等方面。情与理的交融具体指从新古典主义的“理”向浪漫主义的“情”过渡，华兹华斯的长诗《序曲》记录了他心灵的成长历程。诗歌从诗人的童年、青年、上大学一直写到参加法国革命以后的岁月，追求一种心理的时空，而这正是后期意象派和现代派诗歌的特点之一。精神顿悟的“时间之点”指诗人在某一时刻拥有了更高的认识能力，思维进入神的国度。诗人的思维超出了日常生活，处于极度的激动中，这种心灵顿悟的宗教体验在绵延而枯燥的时间里永存。(王颖，2007)
华兹华斯的想像观
Watson(1985)认为华兹华斯诗歌的创新的地方，正在于他对人的心灵主题的处理。在华兹华斯看来心灵相对而言是独立的、能动的、超验的、可感觉的、有创造性的，人的最高境界是精神层面的，不仅依赖智力的发展，还更依赖想像力、情感、直觉和爱的发展，把心灵的这种创造力看得如同上帝一般神圣。因此，他几乎用了一生来刻画一位诗人的想像力的成长——这就是史诗般的《序曲，或一位诗人的心灵成长》(简称《序曲》)，成为英国浪漫主义文学最高成就的代表作品之一。
华兹华斯关于想像力的理论建立在前人成就的基础上，主要包括以下几点:首先有关诗歌的创作过程。好诗是情感起关键作用的想像过程的产物，但这种情感又是“在平静中回忆起来的”。然后是关于诗歌能主要通过修辞手法和韵律来表现情感的主张。他认为诗的语言应表现想像力的全部力量。最后是关于想像和幻想，也就是“改变、创造和联想的能力”，以及它们的区别。学者们认为华兹华斯自己的诗歌与他的关于想像学说紧密相连、互相影响，他不仅创立了诗歌理论，而且实践了自己的理论，其诗学思想也表现在他的诗歌里。(李红雨，2006)华兹华斯重视想像力，在1815年版序言中他指出想像意味着意识的更大的积极性，想像能再现事物最本质的特征，不在于偶然的突出的特性，而幻想引起的表象有时离得太远，反映的是从属的和次要的特征。想像与幻想是诗人形象思维过程中的一对孪生姐妹，同样都是活跃的创造能力，在诗人的创作思维过程中起着十分重要的作用。它们既有细微差别，又相互交织。同时华兹华斯敏感地意识到诗人的心灵在创作过程中的重要性，关注着诗人的想像力的成长。他把想像力比作鸟类的翅膀，认为人有了心灵的翅膀——丰富的想像力，诗人就可能创作出伟大的诗歌。
华兹华斯的诗论
学者们在研究华兹华斯的诗作时发现，他对诗歌创作理论作出了很大的贡献。华兹华斯认为诗歌是情感的自然流露。同时他认为“一切好诗的共同点，就是合情合理”，诗歌创作是“平静中回忆起来的情感”、“沉思”，诗歌创作有理性的控制等。在研究华兹华斯诗作中情与理的关系时，有学者认为诗歌既是有意识的艺术又是自发性的艺术，“沉思”是协调情与理的中介，“沉思”是诗人情感对象化的中介。“合情合理”应是诗的最高标准，它既是对古希腊以来诗学思想中以理抑情思想的突破，又是对20世纪诸多诗学理论的预示，如后期象征主义的“自我隐去”、精神分析、原型理论、读者接受理论等。“情”是个人情感与人类共同情感的融合，并借助于语言文字而外显为艺术作品。“理”是社会道德、信仰与文化积淀在诗人身上的体现，“理”从诗人的选材、构思、对诗歌效果的期待到创作过程，都起着对“情”的过滤、干扰作用。在诗人的实践中，合理的未必合情，合情的也未必合理，这也正是古希腊以来诗学家有时张扬情感、有时又以理压情的原因。通过“沉思”这一中介华兹华斯试图协调二者。“沉思”使得个人情感消除了私人化的性质而与人类共同情感相融合，使得征兆式的情感化为艺术作品。“沉思”也使得伦理、道德、宗教都脱却了说教的外衣，而披上了情感的光环。“沉思”使情与理不分彼此、相辅相成。(苏文菁，1999)
华兹华斯与中国诗人对比研究
近年来，越来越多的学者把华兹华斯的诗学理论与中国诗人的诗学理论进行对比研究，他们认为华兹华斯诗学博大精深，存在与中国诗学理论相比较的因素。在诗的内容上，华兹华斯的“最低微的鲜花”之说可与庄子的“天地有大美而不言”之说相比较。华兹华斯和庄子都认为借助诗歌的形式，在讴歌自然时，诗人可以在无情中传达着有情，于伤感中透露着喜悦，普通的人和物在他们的笔下成了永恒，平常的故事也因为增加了感情的重量和哲学的深度而成了不朽的颂歌。在诗的情感上，华兹华斯的“童年理念”可与李贽的“童心说”相比较。在华兹华斯看来童心即儿童之心，童心之可贵在于它那纯真不假的气质。它纯洁无瑕，充满了力量和智慧。可是当孩童渐渐长大时，却逐渐被“牢笼的阴影”即被世俗的杂念所笼罩，及至长大成人，最终剩下的就只有“暗淡流光，平凡日月”了。所以诗人认为，自然界中和人性里一切天然的东西才是最真实、最宝贵的，表现在文艺美学方面，真正优美的诗歌则必然是诗人真实感情的自然流露。对此我国诗人李贽也曾表示过相同的观点，在他看来童心，也就是赤子之心和真情实感。他极其推崇童心，就因为童心是不会弄虚作假的，而“真”则是一切文学创作的灵魂。他还将“真”全面引入文学批评，认为评价文学应以真情实感为标准，不能以时势先后分优劣，同时李贽还以童心解释文学现象，提出了他的尚“真”、贵“真”的文学思想。在诗的语言上，华兹华斯用朴实自然的语言来表达自己强烈的情感或者说“采用人们真正使用的语言”的主张与中国梁代的钟嵘和清代的刘毓崧所提出的语言特点不谋而合。(朱芳，2007)
学者们在研究王维与华兹华斯诗歌的共性时，通过研读二人的诗作，发现他们的许多作品题材相同，都描写田园山水的自然风光、他们的语言简洁、意象鲜明、作品均具画意性，有些作品纯乎写景而情在其中。(张国胜，2006)
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