The Enfolded Prelude: Book Eleventh
1805 text is in green 1850 text is in purple
From this that time forth forth, Authority in France, as is well known,France
Authority put Put on a milder face,face; Terror had ceased,
Yet every thing everything was wanting that might give
Courage to those them who looked for good by light
Of rational experience good I meanExperience, for the shoots
At hand, and in the spirit And hopeful blossoms of past aims.a second spring:
The same belief I nevertheless retained:Yet, in me, confidence was unimpaired;
The language of the Senate, Senate's language, and the public acts
And public measures of the Government,Government, though both
Though both Weak, and of heartless omen, had not power
Chapter Eleventh begins here in 1850 Version.
To daunt me. In me; in the people People was my trust,trust:
And And, in the virtues which mine eyes had seen,
And to the ultimate repose of things
I looked with unabated confidence.
I knew that wound external could not take
Life from the young Republic, Republic; that new foes
Would only follow follow, in the path of shameshame,
Their brethren, and her triumphs be in the end
Great, universal, irresistible.
This faith, which was an object in my mind
Of passionate intuition, had effect
Not small in dazzling me; for thus, through zeal,intuition led me to confound
Such One victory I confounded in my thoughts
With one far with another, higher and more difficult:
Triumphs of unambitious peace at home,
And noiseless fortitude. far,—
Triumphs of unambitious peace at home,
And noiseless fortitude. Beholding still
Resistance strong as heretofore, I thought
That what was in degree the same was likewise
The same in quality, that that, as the worse
Of the two spirits then at strife remained
Untired, the better surely better, surely, would preserve
The heart that first had rouzed him never dreamt
That transmigration could be undergone,
A fall of being suffered, and of hope,
By creature that appeared to have received
Entire conviction what a great ascent
Had been accomplished, what high faculties
It had been called to. roused him. Youth maintains, I knew,maintains,
In all conditions of societysociety,
Communion more direct and intimate
With Nature, and the inner strength she has.—
And hence, ofttimes, no less with reason too—
Than age, or manhood even. hence, ofttimes, with reason too—
Than age or manhood, even. To Nature Nature, then,
Power had reverted: habit, custom, law,
Had left an interregnum's open space
For her 'her' to stir move about in, uncontrolled.
The warmest judgments, and the most untaught,
Found in events which every day brought forth
Enough to sanction them and far, far more
To shake the authority of canons drawn
From ordinary practice. I Hence could see
How I see how Babel-like the employment was of thosetheir task,
Who, by the recent deluge stupefied,stupified,
With their whole souls went culling from the day
Its petty promises promises, to build a tower
For their own safety safety; laughed at with my compeers
At gravest heads,heads, by enmity to France
Who, watching Distempered, till they found, in their hate of France for signsevery blast
Of her disasters, if Forced from the stream of rumour
Brought with it one green branch, conceited thencestreet-disturbing newsman's horn,
That not a single tree was left aliveFor her great cause record or prophecy
In all her forests. Of utter ruin. How could I might we believe
That wisdom could could, in any shape shape, come near
Men clinging to delusions so insane?
And thus, experience proving that no few
Of my our opinions had been just, I we took
Like credit to myself ourselves where less was due,
And thought that other notions were as sound—
Yea, could not but be right because I saw
That foolish men opposed them.
Yea, could not but be right, because we saw
That foolish men opposed them.
To a strain
More animated I might here give way,
And tell, since juvenile errors are my theme,
What in those days days, through Britain Britain, was performed
To turn all judgements 'all' judgments out of their right course;
But this is passion over near over-near ourselves,
Reality too close and too intense,
And mingled up intermixed with something, in my mind,
Of scorn and condemnation personalpersonal,
That would profane the sanctity of verse.
Our shepherds (this Shepherds, this say merely) merely, at that time
Thirsted Acted, or seemed at least to act, like men
Thirsting to make the guardian crook of law
A tool of murder. They murder; they who ruled the state,
Though with such awful proof before their eyes
That he who would sow death, reaps death, or worse,
And can reap nothing better, childlike longed
To imitate not wise enough to avoid.
Giants in their impiety alone,
But in their weapons and their warfare base
As vermin working out of reach, they leagued
Their strength perfidiously to undermine
Justice, and make an end of liberty.State—
Though with such awful proof before their eyes
That he, who would sow death, reaps death, or worse,
And can reap nothing better child-like longed
To imitate, not wise enough to avoid;
Or left (by mere timidity betrayed)
The plain straight road, for one no better chosen
Than if their wish had been to undermine
Justice, and make an end of Liberty.
But from these bitter truths I must return
To my own history. It hath been told
That I was led to take an eager part
In arguments of civil politypolity,
Abruptly, and indeed before my time:
I had approached, like other youth, youths, the shield
Of human nature from the golden side,
And would have fought fought, even to the death death, to attest
The quality of the metal which I saw.
What there is best in individual man,
Of wise in passion passion, and sublime in power,
What there is strong and pure in household love,
Benevolent in small societies,
And great in large ones also, when called forth
By great occasions these were things of which
ones, I something knew; yet even these themselves,had oft revolved,
Felt deeply, were but not thoroughly understood
By reason. Nay, reason: nay, far from it; they were yet,
As cause was given me afterwards to learn,
Not proof against the injuries of the day.—
Lodged only at the sanctuary's door,
Not safe within its bosom. day;
Lodged only at the sanctuary's door,
Not safe within its bosom. Thus prepared,
And with such general insight into evil,
And of the bounds which sever it from good,
As books and common intercourse with life
Must needs have given (to to the noviciate inexperienced mind,
When the world travels in a beaten road,
Guide faithful as is needed), needed I began
To think meditate with fervour upon managementardour on the rule
Of nations And management of nations; what it is and ought to be,is
And ought to be; and strove to learn how their worth depended on their laws,far
And on the constitution Their power or weakness, wealth or poverty,
Their happiness or misery, depends
Upon their laws, and fashion of the state.State.
O pleasant exercise of hope and joy,joy!
For great mighty were the auxiliars which then stood
Upon our side, we us who were strong in love.love!
Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive,
But to be young was very heaven! Heaven! O times,
In which the meagre, stale, forbidding ways
Of custom, law, and statute statute, took at once
The attraction of a country in romanceromance!
When Reason seemed the most to assert her rights
When most intent on making of herself
A prime enchanter enchantress to assist the workwork,
Which then was going forwards forward in her name.name!
Not favored favoured spots alone, but the whole earth,Earth,
The beauty wore of promise, promise that which sets
(To take an image which was felt, no doubt,(As at some moments might not be unfelt
Among the bowers of Paradise itself)
The budding rose above the rose full-blown.full blown.
What temper at the prospect did not wake
To happiness unthought of? The inert
Were rouzed, roused, and lively natures rapt away.away!
They who had fed their childhood upon dreams—
The playfellows of fancy, who had made
All powers of swiftness, subtlety, and strength
Their ministers, used to stir in lordly wise
Among the grandest objects of the sense,
And deal with whatsoever they found there
As if they had within some lurking right
To wield it they too, who, of gentle mood,
Had watched all gentle motions, and to these
Had fitted their own thoughts (schemers more mild,
And in the region of their peaceful selves),
Did now find helpers to their hearts' desire
And stuff at hand plastic as they could wish,
Were called upon to exercise their skill
Not in Utopia subterraneous fields,
Or some secreted island, heaven knows where—
But in the very world which is the world
Of all of us, the place in which, in the end,
We find our happiness, or not at all.dreams,
Why should I not confess that earth was thenThe play-fellows of fancy, who had made
To me what an inheritance new-fallenAll powers of swiftness, subtilty, and strength
Seems, when Their ministers, who in lordly wise had stirred
Among the first time visited, to onegrandest objects of the sense,
Who thither comes to find in it his home?And dealt with whatsoever they found there
He walks about and looks upon the placeAs if they had within some lurking right
With cordial transport moulds it and remoulds.—
And is half pleased with things that are amiss,
'Twill be such joy to see them disappear.To wield it;—they, too, who of gentle mood
Had watched all gentle motions, and to these
Had fitted their own thoughts, schemers more mild,
And in the region of their peaceful selves;—
Now was it that 'both' found, the meek and lofty
Did both find, helpers to their hearts' desire,
And stuff at hand, plastic as they could wish,—
Were called upon to exercise their skill,
Not in Utopia, subterranean fields,
Or some secreted island, Heaven knows where!
But in the very world, which is the world
Of all of us, the place where, in the end,
We find our happiness, or not at all!
Why should I not confess that Earth was then
To me, what an inheritance, new-fallen,
Seems, when the first time visited, to one
Who thither comes to find in it his home?
He walks about and looks upon the spot
With cordial transport, moulds it and remoulds,
And is half-pleased with things that are amiss,
'Twill be such joy to see them disappear.
An active partisan, I thus convoked
From every object pleasant circumstance
To suit my ends. ends; I moved among mankind
With genial feelings still predominant,predominant;
When erring, erring on the better side,part,
And in the kinder spirit—placable,
Indulgent ofttimes to the worst desires,
As, on one side, not uninformed that men
See as it hath been taught them, and that time
Gives rights to error; on the other hand
That throwing off oppression must be work
As well of licence as of liberty;
And above all (for this was more than all),
Not caring if the wind did now and then
Blow keen upon an eminence that gave
Prospect so large into futurity.—
In brief, a child of Nature, as at first,
Diffusing only those affections wider
That from the cradle had grown up with me,
And losing, in no other way than light
Is lost in light, the weak in the more strong.spirit; placable,
Indulgent, as not uninformed that men
See as they have been taught Antiquity
Gives rights to error; and aware, no less
That throwing off oppression must be work
As well of License as of Liberty;
And above all for this was more than all—
Not caring if the wind did now and then
Blow keen upon an eminence that gave
Prospect so large into futurity;
In brief, a child of Nature, as at first,
Diffusing only those affections wider
That from the cradle had grown up with me,
And losing, in no other way than light
Is lost in light, the weak in the more strong.
In the main outline, such it might be said,said
Was my condition, till with open war
Britain opposed the liberties of France.
This threw me first out of the pale of love,love;
Soured and corrupted corrupted, upwards to the source,
My sentiments; was not, as hitherto,
A swallowing up of lesser things in great,
But change of them into their opposites,contraries;
And thus a way was opened for mistakes
And false conclusions of the intellect,
As gross in their degree, and conclusions, in their kinddegree as gross,
Far, far In kind more dangerous. What had been a pridepride,
Was now a shame, shame; my likings and my loves
Ran in new channels, leaving old ones dry;
And thus hence a blow, which blow that, in maturer ageage,
Would but have touched the judgement, judgment, struck more deep
Into sensations near the heart. Meantime,heart: meantime,
As from the first, wild theories were afloat,
Unto the subtleties of which at least,To whose pretensions, sedulously urged,
I had but lent a careless ear ear, assured
Of this, that That time would soon was ready to set all things right,
Prove And that the multitude had been multitude, so long oppressed,
And would Would be so oppressed no more. more.
But when events
Brought less encouragement, and unto these
The immediate proof of principles no more
Could be entrusted entrusted, while the events themselves,
Worn out in greatness, and in stripped of novelty,
Less occupied the mind, and sentiments
Could through my understanding's natural growth
No longer justify themselves through faithkeep their ground, by faith maintained
Of inward consciousness, and hope that laid
Its Her hand upon its her object evidence
Safer, of universal application, such
As could not be impeached, was sought elsewhere.
And But now, become oppressors in their turn,
Frenchmen had changed a war of self-defence
For one of conquest, losing sight of all
Which they had struggled for, and for: up mounted up,now,
Openly in the view eye of earth and heaven,
The scale of Liberty. liberty. I read her doom,
Vexed inly somewhat, it is true, and With anger vexed, with disappointment sore,
But not dismayed, nor taking to the shame
Of a false prophet. But, rouzed up, While resentment rose
Striving to hide, what nought could heal, the wounds
Of mortified presumption, I stuckadhered
More Firmly firmly to old tenets, and, to prove
Their temper, strained them more; and thus, in heat
Of contest, did opinions every day
Grow into consequence, till round my mind
They clung clung, as if they were the life its life, nay more,
The very being of it.the immortal soul.
This was the time time, when, all things tending fast
To depravation, the philosophy
That promised to abstract the hopes of man
Out of his feelings, to be fixed thenceforth
For ever in a purer element,
Found ready welcome. speculative schemes—
That promised to abstract the hopes of Man
Out of his feelings, to be fixed thenceforth
For ever in a purer element—
Found ready welcome. Tempting region that'that'
For zeal Zeal to enter and refresh herself,
Where passions had the privilege to work,
And never hear the sound of their own names—
But, speaking more in charity, the dream
Was flattering to the young ingenuous mind
Pleased with extremes, and not the least with that
Which makes the human reason's naked self
The object of its fervour. What delight !—
How glorious! in self-knowledge and self-rule
To look through all the frailties of the world,
And, with a resolute mastery shaking off
The accidents of nature, time, and place,
That make up the weak being of the past,
Build social freedom on its only basis:
The freedom of the individual mind,
Which, to the blind restraint of general laws
Superior, magisterially adopts
One guide the light of circumstances, flashed
Upon an independent intellect.
For howsoe'er unsettled, never oncenames.
Had I thought ill of human-kind, or beenBut, speaking more in charity, the dream
Indifferent to its welfare, but, enflamedFlattered the young, pleased with extremes, nor least
With thirst of a secure intelligence,that which makes our Reason's naked self
And sick The object of other passion, I pursuedits fervour. What delight!
A higher nature wished that man should startHow glorious! in self-knowledge and self-rule,
Out To look through all the frailties of the worm-like state in which he is,world,
And spread abroad the wings And, with a resolute mastery shaking off
Infirmities of nature, time, and place,
Build social upon personal Liberty,
Lord Which, to the blind restraints of himself, in undisturbed delight.general laws,
A noble aspiration! yet I feelSuperior, magisterially adopts
The aspiration but with other thoughtsOne guide, the light of circumstances, flashed
And happier: for I was perplexed and soughtUpon an independent intellect.
To accomplish the transition by such meansThus expectation rose again; thus hope,
As did not lie in nature, sacrificedFrom her first ground expelled, grew proud once more.
The exactness of a comprehensive mindOft, as my thoughts were turned to human kind,
To scrupulous and microscopic viewsI scorned indifference; but, inflamed with thirst
That furnished out materials for Of a worksecure intelligence, and sick
Of false imagination, placed beyondother longing, I pursued what seemed
The limits A more exalted nature; wished that Man
Should start out of experience and his earthy, worm-like state,
And spread abroad the wings of truth.Liberty,
Lord of himself, in undisturbed delight—
A noble aspiration! 'yet' I feel
(Sustained by worthier as by wiser thoughts)
The aspiration, nor shall ever cease
To feel it; but return we to our course.
Enough, no doubt, 'tis true could such a plea excuse
Those aberrations had the advocates themselvesclamorous friends
Of ancient institutions had performedInstitutions said and done
To bring disgrace upon their very names;
Disgrace Disgrace, of which custom, which, custom and written law,
And sundry moral sentiments, sentiments as props
And Or emanations of these those institutes,
Too justly bore a part. A veil had been
Uplifted. Why Uplifted; why deceive ourselves? 'twas so,in sooth,
'Twas even so so; and sorrow for the man
Who either had no not eyes wherewith to see,
Or seeing hath forgotten. Let this pass,
Suffice it that a shock Or, seeing, had then been givenforgotten! A strong shock
To Was given to old opinions, and the minds of opinions; all menmen's minds
Had felt it that my mind its power, and mine was both let loose,
Let loose and goaded. After what hath been
Already said of patriotic love,
And hinted at in other sentiments,
We need not linger long upon this theme,
This only may be said, that from the first
Having two natures in me (joy the one,Suffice it here to add, that, somewhat stern
The other melancholy), and withalIn temperament, withal a happy man,
A happy man, and And therefore bold to look
On look on painful things slow, somewhat, too, and sternthings,
In temperament I took Free likewise of the knife in hand,
And, stopping not at parts less sensitive,world, and thence more bold,
Endeavoured with I summoned my best skill, and toiled, intent
To anatomise the frame of skill to probesocial life;
The living Yea, the whole body of society
Even Searched to the its heart. I pushed without remorse
My speculations forward, yea, set foot
On Nature's holiest places.
Time may comeShare with me, Friend! the wish
When That some dramatic story may affordtale, endued with shapes
Shapes livelier to convey to thee, my friend,Livelier, and flinging out less guarded words
Than suit the work we fashion, might set forth
What then I learned learned, or think I learned learned, of truth,
And the errors into which I was fell, betrayed
By present objects, and by reasonings false
From the beginning, their beginnings, inasmuch as drawn
Out of a heart which that had been turned aside
From Nature Nature's way by external outward accidents,
And which was thus confounded confounded, more and more,more
Misguiding Misguided, and misguided. Thus misguiding. So I fared,
Dragging all passions, notions, shapes of faith,precepts, judgments, maxims, creeds,
Like culprits of to the bar, suspiciouslybar; calling the mind,
Calling the mind Suspiciously, to establish in plain day
Her titles and her honours, honours; now believing,
Now disbelieving, disbelieving; endlessly perplexed
With impulse, motive, right and wrong, the ground
Of moral obligation obligation, what the rule,rule and whence
And what the sanction The sanction; till, demanding proof,formal 'proof',
And seeking it in every thing, I lost
All feeling of conviction, and, in fine,
Sick, wearied out with contrarieties,
Yielded up moral questions in despair,despair.
And for my future studies, as This was the sole
Employment crisis of the inquiring faculty,that strong disease,
Turned towards mathematics, This the soul's last and their clearlowest ebb; I drooped,
And solid evidence.Deeming our blessed reason of least use
Ah, then it wasWhere wanted most: "The lordly attributes
That thou, most precious friend, about this timeOf will and choice," I bitterly exclaimed
First known to me, didst lend "What are they but a living help
To regulate my soul. And then it was
That the beloved woman in whose sightmockery of a Being
Those days were passed now speaking Who hath in no concerns of his a voicetest
Of sudden admonition like a brook
That does but cross a lonely road; good and nowevil; knows not what to fear
Seen, heard and felt, and caught at every turn,Or hope for, what to covet or to shun;
Companion never lost through many a league—
Maintained for me a saving intercourse
With my true self (for, though impaired, and changed
Much, as it seemed, I was no further changed
Than as a clouded, not a waning moon);
She, in the midst of all, preserved me still
A poet, made me seek beneath that name