Tintern Abbey - William Wordsworth's "Nature Philosophy"

Tintern Abbey - William Wordsworth’s  “Nature Philosophy”.

When William Wordsworth has first visited the Wye In 1793, the sights and sounds of Nature intoxicated him. Nature was then a passion with him and the spontaneous joy of senses thrilled him. On his second visit to the place, he finds that the earlier delight is lost to him. The beautiful sights of nature no more throw him into that rapture, that ecstasy which he had known five years back. This change in his attitude towards Nature is to be traced in the sad events of the French Revolution, which left Wordsworth a thoroughly disillusioned and sad man. Wordsworth in his early life was an ardent supporter of liberty and republican principles. When French revolutionaries tried to overthrow the crushing yoke of monarchy, Wordsworth greeted the new movement with great enthusiasm and fervour. To Him the Revolution symbolized the regeneration of the suffering humanity. He identified himself completely with the cause of the Revolution as is evident from these lines.

Europe at that time was thrilled with joy,

France standing on the top of golden hours,

And human nature seeming born again.

But bitter disillusionment was in store for him. The Revolution, which had started as a cry for liberty, equality, and fraternity, for recognition of the innate dignity of man, was soon turned into an instrument for annihilating these very ideals. From a fight for liberty it was turned into a war of conquest. This pained Wordsworth greatly and all his hopes were dashed to the ground. He lost his faith in humanity, Nature and even in God. Recoiling from this disappointment, he tried vanity to seek shelter in the dry intellectualism of Godwin, but it was not the balm he so badly needed to comfort his hurt soul. For a long time Wordsworth’s vision was obscured by this spiritual crisis which had brought inner darkness and despair in its train. However, he gradually recovered his confidence in Nature and human nature, thanks largely to the healing influence of Dorothy. He confesses his debt to her.

She gave me eyes; she gave me ears;

And humble tears, and delicate fears;

A heart, the fountain of sweet tears,

And love, and thought, and joy.

Therefore, when Wordsworth visits Tintern Abbey a second time he is not the same buoyant person who had come there five years ago. Now he is a sad person, one who has submitted himself to the chastening influence of suffering.

Thus Wordsworth is deprived of his early raptures, yet he is compensated by Nature in others ways. The impact of suffering on his mind has quickened his sensibilities and sharpened his insight into the life of things. He now discovers a spiritual life in Nature in contemplation of which he seeks his consolation. He realises that truth which was to sustain him in his after life. It is the firm belief of Wordsworth that there is a preconceived harmony between Nature and the mind of Man. This mystical philosophy is the cornerstone of Wordsworth’s poetry.

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