Abstract
In Dorothy’s letters written during the Grasmere years (1799–1808), at the height of William’s poetic creativity and when Dorothy was most actively contributing to his verse, she habitually denigrates her own poetic ability. In a letter to Lady Beaumont of 20 April 1806 — at the time when William was writing The Prelude — Dorothy infantilizes her poetic identity by exiling herself from the realm of adult writing:
Do not think that I was ever bold enough to hope to compose verses for the pleasure of grown persons. Descriptions, Sentiments, or little stories for children was all I could be ambitious of doing, and I did try one story, but failed so sadly that I was completely discouraged. (LWDW, II, p. 24)
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© 2012 Nicola Healey
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Healey, N. (2012). ‘My hidden life’: Dorothy, William and Poetic Identity. In: Dorothy Wordsworth and Hartley Coleridge. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230391796_7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230391796_7
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-32563-4
Online ISBN: 978-0-230-39179-6
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