Latest news with #Wordsworth
Telegraph
2 days ago
- General
- Telegraph
Wordsworth's ‘colonial links' investigated using taxpayers' money
Taxpayers' money has been used to investigate 'colonial links' at William Wordsworth 's cottage. His former Lake District home, Dove Cottage in Grasmere, is now operated as a museum dedicated to the poet's literacy legacy. This legacy has been examined for 'slavery and East India Company histories' as part of a wider effort to alter how Romantic writers are presented. The publicly funded project aimed to address the 'silence and inaction' over Wordsworth's imperial associations at Dove Cottage, which annually attracts around 70,000 visitors. Wordsworth's brother, John, worked for the East India Company and died in the wreck of one of its ships. The colonial research project was carried out in partnership with the Wordsworth Trust, which runs the cottage museum, and Prof Simon Bainbridge, a trustee and academic at the University of Lancaster. A grant of £35,000 from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), a funding quango, was intended to support efforts to highlight the colonial links of famous British writers. The former homes – now museums – of some of Britain's greatest poets, including John Keats, Lord Byron and Samuel-Taylor Coleridge, also collaborated in the decolonising project. Another of Wordsworth's properties in Cockermouth and the home of Robert Burns, Scotland's national poet, were also included in the project, which aimed to 'investigate the colonial links of Romantic-period literary house museums'. The network of literary attractions aimed to build on this investigation, moving on to devise ways to present potential colonial links to 'a wider public'. None of the writers had any direct personal involvement with colonisation or the slave trade, apart from Wordsworth, who may have gained from his brother's financial ventures. He did, however, write abolitionist poetry and called abolition an 'enterprise sublime'. Burns sought work on Caribbean plantation as an impoverished young man, before changing his mind, and Byron's aristocratic wealth appears not to have been derived from slavery. Keats was from a humble background and was dead by 25, while Wordsworth's close friend and collaborator, Coleridge, frequently wrote in support of abolition as a young man. The project outline on the AHRC website acknowledged that 'because literary figures inspire reverence and widespread public respect' efforts to link them to colonial wrongdoing often provoked 'public and media hostility'. However, the project, which officially ended in 2024, set out to reveal how the Romantic period's 'literary house museums bear (witness) to colonialism in numerous ways' which 'frequently remain unexplored or untold'. The project sought to create resources for literary museum staff to examine and explain colonial links to the public, but this was abandoned. Prof Bainbridge said: 'The network ultimately decided against creating general resources for writers' house museums to address the issues discussed. 'The issues proved too complex to produce such group resources; rather, the emphasis as the network developed was on museums reflecting on the issues discussed in relation to their own specific contexts. 'The museums are committed to resourcing public knowledge about the past, including on this topic.' He added: 'The issues and ideas discussed may inform the work of the Wordsworth Trust going forward but this will be a matter for their own future reflection.' The re-examination of the Romantics comes following a broader drive to present the colonial connections of famous figures, particularly following Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, which has dragged writers into frequent rows. In 2021, the National Trust released an audit of properties linked to colonialism and slavery, which included the Sussex home of Rudyard Kipling, and another Wordsworth property, Allan Bank. The British Library also undertook work in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests to address any links to slaver y among the literary figures represented in its collection.
South Wales Argus
6 days ago
- South Wales Argus
Fear, beer, love and loathing in the Lake District
Cumbria's crown jewel is arguably the definitive place to escape the foibles of everyday life. A seemingly limitless landscape that promises possibility, adventure and, above all else, escapism. Well, at least in England anyway. In 2020, two friends and I cycled from Snowdon to Scafell Pike and then to Ben Nevis for charity (beepity, beep, beep). Owing to its storied past, I was arguably looking forward to the Lake District section of the journey the most. The majestic home of Wordsworth, Coleridge, Ruskin, Potter, and even Pallet. I was practically drunk at the thought of passing through an area that fosters such a deep connection to nature. Penrith (Image: Newsquest) We passed through Cockermouth, Keswick, Kendal, Whitehaven, Maryport, and Carlisle, among other places, tackling fatigue, bickering, COVID restrictions, and, above all else, the elements. On an average day, Hardknott Pass is described as 'England's steepest and toughest road'. During our visit amidst Storm Ellen, Hardknott Pass was poetically christened 'A hellish slog made worse by an unforgiving cow.' The Lake District inspired Wordsworth to write. I was inspired to scream slurs at the Met Office. It wasn't the experience I had envisaged. Fast forward five years, and I had a chance of a Lakes redemption, courtesy of Hoseasons, who had kindly booked myself, my girlfriend and our two friends into a lodge near Ullswater. Very fancy pants. Ullswater (Image: Newsquest) Fear The lakes are an immensely popular destination for people in the north west, north east, Yorkshire and parts of the Midlands due to being in relatively close proximity. As mentioned earlier, we're from north Wales, so the drive up to the Lake District - depending on where - should usually take just over two hours. Did it hell. I always find it mind-boggling how Chester and Cumbria are part of the same region. The M6 isn't exactly scenic, and it was made all the worse by delay after delay. After the third alert, I looked at Georgia and bellowed the first Withnail quote of the weekend: "WE'VE COME ON HOLIDAY BY MISTAKE!" But it only got worse. A gentleman in a Merc with a strong desire for death took it upon himself to try and cause several crashes by diving in and out of lanes to beat the traffic. You're not Jason Bourne, give it a rest. But the lorries on the way up made Mr Bourne look like Brum. My god, I've never experienced anything like it. If you're knackered, kip! We genuinely had about eight near misses from lorries presumably going to Scotland straying absent-mindedly into our lane. The sheer fear on that drive up made our Garmins practically self-immolate. If you're going to make the journey up, honestly, be careful. But before long, we passed the border into Cumbria. Flusco Wood is the place to be if you're looking to stay in the Lake District (Image: Newsquest) Beer As soon as we started seeing signs for Keswick, Penrith, etc, all those motorway woes completely disappeared. Traffic vanished, and all we could see was a picture-perfect backdrop made all the better by our soundtrack, The Who's 'I Can See for Miles'. Our destination was Flusco Wood, in Ullswater. If you're looking to go, a 3-night stay for up to 4 people costs from £455 in June and from £539 in July. I could not recommend it more. The lodge was beautifully furnished, and we even had our own hot tub. Seconds after arriving, myself, Georgia, Jord and Sophie were all in it, beers in hand. Over the three days, we certainly had our fill. The local beers in Cumbria are just a different breed. I urge you to make the journey just for a local craft ale alone. One of us - I won't dob you in, Georgia - couldn't walk properly due to a 'foot injury'. So we were a little restricted on what we could do during the day. Wah wah wah wah wah wah wah (Image: Newsquest) Ullswater was the main attraction for the weekend, so instead of walking, we thought we'd row. A boat for four people over four hours will set you back £60 altogether. It really is an excellent way to explore Ullswater if you don't fancy straining yourself too much. I've been to Wastwater, England's deepest lake, before, but felt like Ullswater had an unrivalled charm. There were also several pubs nearby, so we were sold. We stopped in at The Crown Inn, The George Hotel and The Pooley Bridge Inn, and I have to say, despite being busy, they were equally brilliant. If you want a quick pint or a bite to eat, I certainly recommend the Crown. For the service and the views. Next on our agenda was Penrith, where things got tasty. It isn't too far from the lodge, so taxis are pretty reasonable. If you're looking for a night out in the area, this will be the place to go; you just need to find the right place. (Image: Newsquest) The first pub we stopped at had a "Bacardi and Coke please", "We don't do cocktails", feel to it, but they're always the best ones. We chatted with locals and had an unforgettable night free from the stresses of work, life and home; it was giddily refreshing. Love My favourite part of the weekend, though, was meeting an American lady called Priscilla from Michigan. She was on a personal pilgrimage following her late husband's favourite folk band, Briar and Bramble. Despite being a widow and on a clearly emotional journey, she radiated a joyous energy that I had never witnessed before. Although we were initially strangers, she became one with our group almost instinctively. Hours passed trading tales of love, tribulations and laughter, where we got a real insight into how people turn mourning into something memorable. It was extremely sobering, and good god did we need that at this point in the night. After swapping numbers with Priscilla - who wants us to visit at some point, I love that about Americans - we soon returned to the lodge for a well-earned rest. What were you thinking? (Image: Newsquest) Loathing Our final day was spent cooking, watching Shrek, and visiting Penrith. How else do you spend a Sunday? Penrith in the day is stunning, I have to admit. The quiet alleys remind me of a less busy Brighton Lanes, and the cobbled streets take you back in time. But it couldn't be all good, could it? No, sir, I had to go and spoil it by sampling two of the most horrendous things your chip shops have to offer. Deep-fried haggis and a deep-fried Mars Bar. I thought that was a Scottish thing? But when I saw it on the menu, I had to try each of them. I'd rather not say anymore, other than whoever dreamt up those combinations needs a trial in the Hague. Recommended reading: I tried Gordon Ramsay's beef wellington at the Savoy - oh my I visited the Grand Hotel in Birmingham and owe an apology I went to Rhodes looking for love but ended up with a goose Love, again Overall, our visit to the Lake District completely made up for that horrendous 2020 trip in more ways than I could ever imagine. It lives up to your expectations in every single way, and then throws magical moments at you when you're least expecting it. Ok, holidays abroad are good, but I can think of no place better in the UK than the Lake District. A must-visit for all. Truly.
Glasgow Times
6 days ago
- Glasgow Times
Fear, beer, love and loathing in the Lake District
Cumbria's crown jewel is arguably the definitive place to escape the foibles of everyday life. A seemingly limitless landscape that promises possibility, adventure and, above all else, escapism. Well, at least in England anyway. In 2020, two friends and I cycled from Snowdon to Scafell Pike and then to Ben Nevis for charity (beepity, beep, beep). Owing to its storied past, I was arguably looking forward to the Lake District section of the journey the most. The majestic home of Wordsworth, Coleridge, Ruskin, Potter, and even Pallet. I was practically drunk at the thought of passing through an area that fosters such a deep connection to nature. Penrith (Image: Newsquest) We passed through Cockermouth, Keswick, Kendal, Whitehaven, Maryport, and Carlisle, among other places, tackling fatigue, bickering, COVID restrictions, and, above all else, the elements. On an average day, Hardknott Pass is described as 'England's steepest and toughest road'. During our visit amidst Storm Ellen, Hardknott Pass was poetically christened 'A hellish slog made worse by an unforgiving cow.' The Lake District inspired Wordsworth to write. I was inspired to scream slurs at the Met Office. It wasn't the experience I had envisaged. Fast forward five years, and I had a chance of a Lakes redemption, courtesy of Hoseasons, who had kindly booked myself, my girlfriend and our two friends into a lodge near Ullswater. Very fancy pants. Ullswater (Image: Newsquest) Fear The lakes are an immensely popular destination for people in the north west, north east, Yorkshire and parts of the Midlands due to being in relatively close proximity. As mentioned earlier, we're from north Wales, so the drive up to the Lake District - depending on where - should usually take just over two hours. Did it hell. I always find it mind-boggling how Chester and Cumbria are part of the same region. The M6 isn't exactly scenic, and it was made all the worse by delay after delay. After the third alert, I looked at Georgia and bellowed the first Withnail quote of the weekend: "WE'VE COME ON HOLIDAY BY MISTAKE!" But it only got worse. A gentleman in a Merc with a strong desire for death took it upon himself to try and cause several crashes by diving in and out of lanes to beat the traffic. You're not Jason Bourne, give it a rest. But the lorries on the way up made Mr Bourne look like Brum. My god, I've never experienced anything like it. If you're knackered, kip! We genuinely had about eight near misses from lorries presumably going to Scotland straying absent-mindedly into our lane. The sheer fear on that drive up made our Garmins practically self-immolate. If you're going to make the journey up, honestly, be careful. But before long, we passed the border into Cumbria. Flusco Wood is the place to be if you're looking to stay in the Lake District (Image: Newsquest) Beer As soon as we started seeing signs for Keswick, Penrith, etc, all those motorway woes completely disappeared. Traffic vanished, and all we could see was a picture-perfect backdrop made all the better by our soundtrack, The Who's 'I Can See for Miles'. Our destination was Flusco Wood, in Ullswater. If you're looking to go, a 3-night stay for up to 4 people costs from £455 in June and from £539 in July. I could not recommend it more. The lodge was beautifully furnished, and we even had our own hot tub. Seconds after arriving, myself, Georgia, Jord and Sophie were all in it, beers in hand. Over the three days, we certainly had our fill. The local beers in Cumbria are just a different breed. I urge you to make the journey just for a local craft ale alone. One of us - I won't dob you in, Georgia - couldn't walk properly due to a 'foot injury'. So we were a little restricted on what we could do during the day. Wah wah wah wah wah wah wah (Image: Newsquest) Ullswater was the main attraction for the weekend, so instead of walking, we thought we'd row. A boat for four people over four hours will set you back £60 altogether. It really is an excellent way to explore Ullswater if you don't fancy straining yourself too much. I've been to Wastwater, England's deepest lake, before, but felt like Ullswater had an unrivalled charm. There were also several pubs nearby, so we were sold. We stopped in at The Crown Inn, The George Hotel and The Pooley Bridge Inn, and I have to say, despite being busy, they were equally brilliant. If you want a quick pint or a bite to eat, I certainly recommend the Crown. For the service and the views. Next on our agenda was Penrith, where things got tasty. It isn't too far from the lodge, so taxis are pretty reasonable. If you're looking for a night out in the area, this will be the place to go; you just need to find the right place. (Image: Newsquest) The first pub we stopped at had a "Bacardi and Coke please", "We don't do cocktails", feel to it, but they're always the best ones. We chatted with locals and had an unforgettable night free from the stresses of work, life and home; it was giddily refreshing. Love My favourite part of the weekend, though, was meeting an American lady called Priscilla from Michigan. She was on a personal pilgrimage following her late husband's favourite folk band, Briar and Bramble. Despite being a widow and on a clearly emotional journey, she radiated a joyous energy that I had never witnessed before. Although we were initially strangers, she became one with our group almost instinctively. Hours passed trading tales of love, tribulations and laughter, where we got a real insight into how people turn mourning into something memorable. It was extremely sobering, and good god did we need that at this point in the night. After swapping numbers with Priscilla - who wants us to visit at some point, I love that about Americans - we soon returned to the lodge for a well-earned rest. What were you thinking? (Image: Newsquest) Loathing Our final day was spent cooking, watching Shrek, and visiting Penrith. How else do you spend a Sunday? Penrith in the day is stunning, I have to admit. The quiet alleys remind me of a less busy Brighton Lanes, and the cobbled streets take you back in time. But it couldn't be all good, could it? No, sir, I had to go and spoil it by sampling two of the most horrendous things your chip shops have to offer. Deep-fried haggis and a deep-fried Mars Bar. I thought that was a Scottish thing? But when I saw it on the menu, I had to try each of them. I'd rather not say anymore, other than whoever dreamt up those combinations needs a trial in the Hague. Recommended reading: I tried Gordon Ramsay's beef wellington at the Savoy - oh my I visited the Grand Hotel in Birmingham and owe an apology I went to Rhodes looking for love but ended up with a goose Love, again Overall, our visit to the Lake District completely made up for that horrendous 2020 trip in more ways than I could ever imagine. It lives up to your expectations in every single way, and then throws magical moments at you when you're least expecting it. Ok, holidays abroad are good, but I can think of no place better in the UK than the Lake District. A must-visit for all. Truly.
Hindustan Times
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
A Biography of Loneliness: Read an excerpt from the book by Fay Bound Alberti
In the critically acclaimed The Lonely City (2017), the writer Olivia Laing extolled the pleasures as well as the pains of loneliness, identifying loneliness as a creative enterprise as well as a manifestation of a particular urban identity. Laing illustrates beautifully the paradoxical situation of loneliness in the modern urban landscape, where one is theoretically closer to others, yet also anonymized and placeless. She links her personal story of loneliness in a vast city to works of modern art, including the anonymity of the self in the work of the American realist painter and printmaker Edward Hopper (1882–1967). Hopper's representations of modern American life, of solitary figures in a hotel lobby or a diner, for instance, surrounded by the possibility of companionship yet somehow removed from others, have become synonymous with the alienation of the urban environment. For the Romantic poets, loneliness intersected with the creation of a particular kind of secular, creative identity—one which was gendered and combined ideas about civilization versus nature with the pursuit of beauty, love, and the soul. The vision of loneliness as a Romantic ideal in the broadest sense, linked to the poetry and writings of the Romantic poets in late eighteenth -and nineteenth- century Britain, drew together earlier ideas about the divine and the spiritual, and reworked these for a humanistic and sometimes deistic mood. The American literary critic and essayist William Deresiewicz has summarized the emergence of Romantic ideals about solitude in ways that acknowledge their eighteenth-century origins and religious roots: The self was now encountered not in God but in Nature, and to encounter Nature one had to go to it. And go to it with a special sensibility: The poet displaced the saint as social seer and cultural model. But because Romanticism also inherited the 18th-century idea of social sympathy, Romantic solitude existed in a dialectical relationship with sociability. The Romantics were not inherently antisocial or in constant need of solitude, then, though that was once a widely held belief. They took moments of solitude, as Wordsworth had, in order to commune with nature, and valued time to reflect on what they had seen, but they were also intensely social when it came to spending time with other poets and writers, to enjoying the conviviality of urbane society. Indeed, the point of writing for the Romantics was to perform a social service as well as a personal and spiritual good; it was searching for answers that might help the individual to negotiate his or her way through an increasingly mechanized, urbanized, and (for some) brutish environment of the Industrial Revolution, and the 'dark, satanic mills' of William Blake. Like Blake, Wordsworth (and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who jointly published Lyrical Ballads with Wordsworth in 1798, though the second edition of 1800 had only the latter as the author) was part of the first generation of British Romantics. In the 1802 edition of Lyrical Ballads, Wordsworth set out the elements for a new type of poetic verse that moved away from the rigid diction of eighteenth-century poetry towards a spontaneous writing style said to be earned through tranquillity in nature and proximity to the soil. The construction of a particular middle-class Romantic sentiment marked by excessive emotionalism and sensitivity to the natural world allowed the self-reflection and introspection needed to commune with God in nature. Wordsworth remained religious throughout his life, though the same was not true of all Romantic poets. And his 'Daffodils' emphasizes the significance of solitude and quiet reflection for this creative process which paralleled the imagination (the inward eye) and the existence of the divine: 'for oft, when on my couch I lie/In vacant or in pensive mood/They flash upon that inward eye/Which is the bliss of solitude'. There are no negative associations here attached to the state of being alone. Loneliness is less apparent in Wordsworth's writings than solitude, which reflects the eighteenth-century absence of loneliness as a pathologized emotional state. As an aside on the centrality of the natural world to the early Romantics, particular forms of environment are known to mediate and promote a sense of loneliness. Geographers, particularly cultural geographers, are sophisticated in narrating the emotional impact of the physical world. One of the striking aspects of twenty-first-century loneliness, especially in urban, impoverished settings, is the lack of 'nature' of any kind; people who do not see greenery from one day to the next are prone, in some studies, to mental health problems, including loneliness, and there is increasing evidence of the restorative function of green spaces. The medicalization of the environment as a source of wellbeing is reminiscent of eighteenth-century discussions of climate and 'taking the air' by engaging with nature in relation to health, as well as the concept of holistic health and the habits of the body. It is important to note both the links between urban impoverishment and a lack of green spaces in twenty-first-century life, and the class-based interpretation of nature as a source of solace during the Romantic era. For Wordsworth's 'peasants', the natural world was much in evidence in the pre-industrial landscape, but it was overwhelmingly the context of hard, manual labour rather than quiet contemplation. In Shelley's Frankenstein, the eponymous doctor seeks solitude as a respite from guilt and regret: 'I shunned the face of man; all sound of joy or complacency was torture to me; solitude was my only consolation—deep, dark, death-like solitude'. There is a hint here of the modern alienation that would become so central to the writers of the early twentieth century, in which solitude was equally respite and torment. Importantly, there is not a single reference to 'loneliness' in Frankenstein, and only one reference to 'lonely', which meant little more than the state of being alone. The desolation of solitude could be associated with the abandonment by the creator; this seems compatible with my suggestion that the increasing secularization of society in outward forms from the late eighteenth century contributed to the creation of loneliness as an emotional state: loneliness as related not only to the state of being alone, but to a related sense of abandonment. At the time Mary Shelley was writing, and despite the political and social radicalism of many of the Romantic poets, women's creativity was still marginalized; some recent scholars have argued that women within the Romantic circle nevertheless experienced distinct forms of alienation and loneliness as artists. Certainly, they might not have wandered as freely in search of daffodils as their male counterparts. And women's writing in the Romantic period continues to be downplayed in favour of their male counterparts. … From 1905, a group of writers, artists, and intellectuals had begun meeting at the home of Virginia Woolf, and her sister, artist Vanessa Bell: 46 Gordon Square, London. These members of the self-constructed 'Bloomsbury Group' were liberal, from wealthy, white backgrounds, and their bohemian rejection of conventional attitudes to sex, morality, and marriage was part of their self-definition. Woolf, however, suffered from mental illness all her life, probably exacerbated by the sexual abuse she had experienced as a child. Woolf also recognized that periods of loneliness were central to her ability to write, to imagine, to create new worlds that were removed from the daily routines of everyday life: 'It is going to be a time of adventure and attack', Woolf wrote in her journal on 28 May 1929—'rather lonely and painful I think. But solitude will be good for a new book. Of course, I shall make friends. I shall be external outwardly. I shall buy some good clothes and go out into new houses. All the time I shall attack this angular shape in my mind'. (Excerpted with permission from A Biography of Loneliness: The History of an Emotion by Fay Bound Alberti, published by Oxford University Press; 2019)
BBC News
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Hope William Wordsworth's Ambleside home will go to 'best bidder'
A descendant of William Wordsworth says he hopes the final home of the Romantic poet, which is on the market, goes to the best "not highest" bidder. Wordsworth rented Rydal Mount, in Ambleside in the Lake District, from 1813 until his death in 1850 and it has been open to the public for this month his great-great-great-great grandson Christopher Wordsworth, who lives in London, put it on the market for £2.5m saying it was too difficult to manage the property remotely. However, Mr Wordsworth said the house was an "amazing haven of literary inspiration" and wanted it to be sold to someone who would keep it open for visitors. Mr Wordsworth said the Grade I listed house, which has a library and five acres (two hectares) of grounds would remain open for the 2025 wedding and event season while it was on the market. The poet never owned Rydal Mount, but designed the Wordsworth said his grandmother bought the house in 1969 and he had known the house his "entire life". He also said it had been a difficult decision to sell up, but he and his brother lived too far away to keep running it."We have a lot of great staff and we need a lot of staff, but it's just getting harder to logistically run it," he said."My grandmother was actually the first Wordsworth to own the house, it's amazing and I've known it all my life. "If I had a magic wand and if I'm honest, I would love it to remain open in some form."It's got the most incredible garden which I adore and the house is a haven of calmness and literary inspiration." It was the third Lake District house Wordsworth lived in and he remained there for 37 years. For the last five decades the family has kept Rydal Mount open to the public for 10 months a year. Mr Wordsworth added: "My brother and I are of the opinion that we want to sell it to whoever will be the best guardian of the house for the future, because it has been very important in our lives."We want it to continue being important in other people's lives so it's going to the best bidder, not the highest." Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
