The turn of the 19th century was a morbid and dark time: death was a common visitor, as was epidemics and diseases. decreased the number of children, and the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars decreased the overall population. In response to such loss, humans were relegated to number one in a practical new system of population management, as government officials went door to door inquiring about household sizes. Idealism and childlike views of nature and one's place in the universe were considered radical and liberal ideas in an age of pragmatism and rigid logic. Additionally, this era of industrialization left no room for childlike passion and appreciation of nature. In the midst of this culture, William Wordsworth emerged, using poetry to offer another perspective to view the world. According to Wordsworth, in his famous essay that sparked the Romantic era of literature, “the passions of men are embodied in the beautiful and permanent forms of nature” (Wordsworth “Preface” 174). These visions of nature as the key to seeing beauty in an imperfect world were reminiscent of childhood, as Wordsworth believed that children possessed the ability to see the world in that romantic way that he idolized. Thus, children are major players in Wordsworth's poetry as a tool to explain the world in this romanticized way that he thought it should be perceived. Two of his poems in particular, "We Are Seven" and "Ode to Intimations of Immortality", offer a strong juxtaposition between the dark realities of the early 19th century and the aforementioned romantic illusions of Wordsworth. Say no to plagiarism. Get a Custom Essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get Original EssayBefore the Romantic period, children were viewed with much less emotional attachment from their parents than is considered as normal today, a prospect that is largely due to the infant mortality rate. As Wordsworth knew from personal experience, by the end of the 18th century, “on average, one in four children died within a decade of birth, fewer than previous generations, but a harsh reality nonetheless; there were few families who had not lost a child” (Rovee 2). Because of this reality, parents rarely become overly attached to their offspring because they have accepted that they will inevitably have to bury one or more young children. Wordsworth, employing emotional rhetoric in his poem, attempted to arouse feelings of love for children, describing them as charming embodiments of innocence. This is particularly seen in the poem “We Are Seven,” which depicts a disagreement between a child and a census taker. The child, originally one of five siblings, has two siblings who now "lie in the churchyard, / [his] sister and [his] brother" (Wordsworth l. 21 -22). Despite the speaker's insistence that deceased siblings no longer count toward the size of the family, the child categorically repeats that "no, [there] are seven" (l. 59), while continuing to describe the time she spends with her siblings each day. plays and eats next to their graves in the church cemetery. Through this story, Wordsworth creates a child who “embodies innocence, immediacy, and uncultivated vision… an idealized construct offering a model for the male poet seeking to redeem the fading light and joy” (Rovee 1) . The child in this poem offersa new perception: the child's joy, despite the death that surrounds her, and the love she has for her separated siblings, suggests that children have an understanding of love that goes beyond the pessimism brought by a culture. infiltrated by death. Indeed, the lack of attachment and appreciation towards children was a cultural norm that Wordsworth saw as problematic, as he continually challenges this status quo in his poetry. The Romantic poet's “concern for childhood is not strictly psychological. On the contrary, [he] conceives it as a period of communion with nature, a time of sensory preparation and spiritual awareness” (Gatti-Taylor 250). Wordsworth's "Ode with Allusions of Immortality" therefore uses a child to inspire the audience to find joy despite the sorrow brought by death and suffering. This poem is thought to be Wordsworth remembering his own childhood, and it begins with the poet appearing "desperate and possessing a sense of longing, for he is no longer a child." Therefore, he cannot enjoy nature as a child does” (Rohanimanesh 181). Wordsworth then praises childhood for its innocence and ability to recognize beauty despite being surrounded by dark realities. The speaker of this poem refers to "delight and freedom, the simple credo / Of childhood, whether busy or at rest, / With new hope still floating in its breast" (Wordsworth l. 141 -143). Saying that the “creed” of childhood is “pleasure and liberty,” Wordsworth changes his mood and “becomes full of hope.” Though these [childhood] days are gone, joy shall never die”: Wordsworth realized that “joy and love give meaning to life” (Rowhanimanesth 181). Also noteworthy in this poem is Wordsworth's image of a child "worried at his mother's kissing exits / with the light upon him of his father's eyes" (Wordsworth l. 89, 90). This affectionate scene between child and parent illustrated by Wordsworth is contrary to the detachment of children from their parents that was the most common dynamic of parent-child relationships during this period, largely due to the frequency of child deaths . It stands to reason that the close relationships that are normal today between parents and their children, as well as the view of children as untouchable innocents, are attributed to the romantic and enduring influence of Wordsworth. The pre-romantic view of children further revolved around their functionality: children were miniature adults, therefore capable of working in factories as soon as they were physically capable. Children's small size was not seen as charming but purely practical in this industrialized era, as they were able to more easily clean the insides of small crevices such as chimneys, a chore which led to a higher infant mortality rate due to complications such as asthma. stunted growth, accidents, and “chimney sweep cancer” (Mayhew 351). The acceptance of this practice is an example of how industrialization dominated the culture of thought in the early 19th century: children were not fed or protected as if they had inherent value, but treated as simple workers. Wordsworth opposed this mindset, believing instead that children are intrinsically “incorporated in the beautiful and permanent forms of nature” (Wordsworth “Preface” 174). So, instead of depicting children in the context of work, it focuses on the free spirits of children existing in communion with nature. In "We Are Seven", the child is shown playing freely around her sister's grave (lines 55) and running and sliding in the snow(lines 57, 58). Not only is this ideology manifested through the child's actions, but also “the poets who referred to this theory sometimes treated it under the guise of imagery” (Gatti-Taylor 255). This might explain why Wordsworth, in line 9 of the poem, describes the child as having "a rustic, woody air." Wordsworth draws a deep connection between nature and the beauty of childhood, further affirming his ideology that children are not designed to be workers destined to further industrialization; rather, they are sacred representations of the divinity of nature. Indeed, Wordsworth was strongly opposed to the detrimental effects of commercialization on a society, and so "at the heart of Wordsworth's romanticism is the role of poetry in combating the evils of industrialization" (Brennan 38). Therefore, "Ode to Intimation of Immortality" similarly depicts childhood in the context of oneness with nature, separate from modern industrialization. Instead of referring to the child's small size in terms of functionality in the job market, the speaker romantically describes the child as a "pygmy-sized six-year-old darling" (Wordsworth 87). The speaker continues to describe the child's vocation not as a worker but as an imaginative actor who creates a "humorous scene" (l. 104) filled "with all the people / ... that life brings with it into its crew” (1.105, 106). The speaker suggests that it is as if “the child's whole vocation was one of endless imitation” (l. 107, 108). In other words, instead of the child's goal being to immerse themselves in work, the child is meant to embrace creativity in which "the child's creative spirit can be summed up as follows: it s “abandons himself to external objects, penetrates them, contemplates himself through objects, and discovers with naive wonder the qualities of nature which he has partly transmitted to it” (Gatti-Taylor 255). Indeed, this poem romanticizes childhood as a time not of the burdens of work or industrialization, but a season of ambrosive life intended for play and freedom. With the demands of factory work and the low life expectancy due to the conditions there, came a degree of pragmatism contrary to Wordsworth's romantic idealism. This was partly realized by the rise of a census in 1798, in which before “there had never been a complete and accurate count of the British population” (Robbins 202). In response to a goal proposed by Parliament, government officials would visit each household to inquire about the “number and situation of [the] family”; families who refused to respond would be meted out with “horse pond discipline” (Robbins 202). This attempt at population regulation is undoubtedly practical, but it leaves no room for idyllic illusions, but rather for “reducing individual subjectivities to numbers and categories” (Robbins 204). “We Are Seven” clearly illustrates these contrasting ideologies, as the poem is considered representative of the first British census. The census taker asks the girl how many people live in her house and she insists that her deceased siblings be included. This response offends the rational sensibilities of the speaker, who insists that “they are dead; these two are dead! / Their spirits are in heaven! (Wordsworth l. 55, 56). The child does not let herself be discouraged by this attempt to reason, but behaves "as if she were a philosopher... she says there are seven of them." She believes that the dead are still alive...the girl's imagination helps her arrive at this conclusion” (Rowhanimanesh 181). In this regard, the girl servesof symbol to the Romantic period and the way in which the principles of Romanticism were considered radical and irrational in the eyes of the convinced pragmatists of the time. Wordsworth continues to use children as a symbol of Romantic ideas in "Ode to Intimations of Immortality", in which he recalls his childhood when "the meadow, the grove, and the brook, / The earth and all that one commonly seen, / [him] seemed / Clothed in heavenly light” (Wordsworth l. 1 -4). This description of childhood is one where ordinary aspects of nature seem extraordinary, as if "children possess powers that allow them to enjoy the beauty of nature in a way that adults would not be able to." do it” (Rohanimanesh 183). For the child, meadows, streams and other common facets of nature are not simple accidents of evolution but divine instruments that contain a supernatural presence. Wordsworth further reinforces the symbol of the child by stating that he is “glorious in power / Of heaven-born liberty to the height of thy being” (Wordsworth l. 126, 127); the implication being that the child enjoys an inherent innocence and freedom by nature itself. This idea would be considered absurd by proponents of pragmatism who viewed nature, like children, as merely functional rather than divine. The value of reason was accompanied by the view of one's own presence in the universe as only the literal physical space that one occupies. Wordsworth and his fellow Romantics adhered to an idea of ​​transcendental presence that transcended the limits of physical space. In this invisible world, “the glory of the soul becomes visible when sense impressions are forcefully usurped by a surge of power” (Davidson 1994). This idea of ​​spiritual presence is particularly important in “We Are Seven,” where the census taker attempts to gather information about the physical occupants of the child’s home. The child not only insists that her deceased siblings are still part of the family, describing them as part of the seven who "lie merely in the churchyard" (Wordsworth l. 31), but she also includes her two other siblings who “went to sea” (l. 20). It does not matter to the child that his brothers and sisters are not physically present at home, and it is the job of the adult in the poem to "arouse in him a childlike sensitivity, in order to project himself once more on his own family. thoughts as well as the external world, the attitude of wonder that transforms ordinary sight into vision” (Gatti-Taylor 259). It is this childlike wonder that allows him to view his siblings as truly present and active participants in his family, even if they are no longer physically present. This contrast between physical presence and the feeling of transcendental presence is representative of the contrasts between radical romantic ideas and reason. Perhaps one of the most horrific realities of the early 19th century from which the Romantic era of literature was born was the Napoleonic Wars, during which the French army carried out a series of invasions on the British front. One of the most significant threats of this era was "the Great Terror of 1803-1804", during which "all of Britain went into high alert as the threat of an ambitious French invasion loomed." » (Matlak 21). It is therefore said that "Wordsworth's poetry of the spring of 1804 seems inspired by the political climate and by his testimony of patriotism" (25). Wordsworth published "Ode to Intimations of Immortality" in 1804, which can therefore be considered a.. 179-184.