S.T. Coleridge (1772–1834) was an English poet, literary critic and philosopher who was a founder of the Romantic movement and a member of the Lake Poets with his friend William Wordsworth. His critical works were highly influential, especially his 'Biographia Literaria' (1817). It is a critical autobiography that unites philosophy with literary criticism in order to define the true nature of poetry, genius, and the creative imagination. Moreover, it is a critical response to the poetic theories of William Wordsworth. According to Arthur Symons, Coleridge's 'Biographia Literaria' is "The greatest book of criticism in English".
Coleridge doesn't judge on the basis of any rules as the
neo-classical critics did. He doesn't pass any judgement, but gives his
responses and reactions to a work of art. Thus his criticism becomes an
impressionistic-romantic one, a new kind of criticism. His greatest and most
original contribution to literary criticism is his theory of imagination. He
defines imagination as a magical and synthetic power. According to him,
imagination has two forms, primary and secondary. Primary imagination is merely
the power of receiving impressions of the external world through the senses. As it is universal, it is possessed by all.
But the secondary imagination works upon what is perceived by the primary
imagination. It dissolves, diffuses, and
dissipates what it gets from primary imagination and reshapes and remodels into
an object of beauty. Thus, he establishes that the secondary imagination is at
the root of all poetic creation. He also proves that poetry is not imitation
but creation.
According to Coleridge, imagination and fancy are activities
of two different kinds. Fancy only combines what it perceives into beautiful
shapes, but like imagination it doesn't fuse and unify. Fancy is like a
mechanical mixture, whereas imagination is like a chemical compound. When all
ingredients exist separately in a mechanical mixture, the different ingredients
combine to form a new one in a chemical compound. Similarly Coleridge
distinguishes a poem from poetry. According to him, poetry is an activity of
the poet's mind and a poem is merely one of the forms of its expression, a
verbal expression of that activity. Moreover, he is of the opinion that poetry
is a kind of activity which can be engaged in by painters, philosophers, or
scientists and is not confined to those who employ metrical language. But a poem is always the work of a poet.
Concerning
the language of poetry, Coleridge doesn't agree with
Wordsworth who says that there was no essential difference between the language
of prose and poetry. Coleridge opines that the language of poetry differs from
that of prose in the same way in which the language of prose differs from the
language of conversation, and as reading differs from talking. The metre in
poetry is not mere superficial decoration, but an essential organic part. Then
concerning the rustic theme, he points out that not all Wordsworth's characters
are chosen from rustic life as he demands. The characters of Wordsworth in
Ruth, Michael and The Brothers aren't rustic. Thus Coleridge refutes
Wordsworth's views on the themes and language of poetry.
Coleridge's
'dramatic illusion', that he formulated to defend Shakespeare's plays, is a
foundational concept in literary criticism that explains how an audience
experiences a stage play or fictional work. He says "when we read a poem
the poet doesn't require us to be awake and believe. He needs only a momentary
suspension of disbelief from us. We need not believe it to be reality, but
merely enjoy what is presented to the mind's eye." However, his
'willing suspension of disbelief" has acquired a wide and universal
popularity. Thus Coleridge philosophised literary criticism that brought about
a better and truer understanding of the process of creation, the nature and
function of poetry.
----Thulasidharan V Thillaiakathu
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