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What Wordsworth Was Afraid Of

Created by jbobsein. Last edited by jbobsein, 3 years and 120 days ago. Viewed 297 times. #3

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In my essay, The Problem of Dear Dorothy, I discuss the ways in which Tintern Abbey is concerned with effective transmission to its audience. Wordsworth tentatively offers an invitation to his reader when he suddenly addresses his sister near the end of the poem. I see a connection between this move and Wordsworth?s concerns about the rapidly expanding reading public that was his audience. The reasons for this curious move intrigue me, and in this project I will illustrate one aspect of Wordsworth?s concerns. This past Ivies weekend I filmed various people, both on campus and in downtown Brunswick, interacting with the poem. I believe that through their interpretations (and misinterpretations) I will demonstrate the reason for Wordsworth?s concerns that emerge in Tintern Abbey.

mphillip, 2 years and 108 days ago.

I don't think this interesting little mini-documentary will get WW spinning in his grave after all. Maybe it's your provision of background, maybe it's good will towards you & your project, or maybe it's compulsory reverence for lyrical poetry - but the subjects of your film all seem to give connection to TA at least something of a shot, and while nobody seems very sure of the poem, many of its moods get touched on here.

I'm not sure why you return to the gentleman with a white beard at the end (he seems to get star billing), and why the camera starts to zoom in and out somewhat erratically. Did you find his take the most thoughtful? Is it a climax of sorts? What this documentary could use is a little more of you, and your interpretation. We're not clear (even after reading your key) about how much you briefed these interviewees about the poem. Though you seem to regard the film as showing why WW should have been concerned about the transmission of his poem, what is on display is a range of attempts to understand this verse--and what remains mysterious is how much the deck is stacked against your subjects, who may have been plunged right into the middle of a long poem with little or no context.

I was struck by how many of your subjects seemed to want to hear 'sister' as a metaphor. This is probably the revelation of your movie - the resistance to hearing that turn to Dorothy as direct address. One guy allows that 'sister' in this poem "might be as literal as his actual sister," but this possibility is mentioned somewhat dismissively. 'Sister' here gets stretched to a girl that the narrator is in love with as well as to the earth. It's quite intriguing that this word sticks so firmly in people's minds, and yet means such various things in their interpretations.

Your open and experimental approach to charting this poem as it may actually be received in this world encouraged cooperation, I suspect, and makes this project memorable. We mentioned the ambient noise when you showed the film in class - the sensitivity of the microphone conveys a world of distraction, constant competition for attention. When one subject spoke of a higher being, I thought I even heard some rolling thunder! Other noises are more prosaic, but still they make up a world where lyrical poetry has to fight for space. In this little film, at least, it has a chance.

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