Chapter XIX Summary and Analysis

Wordsworth's theory of style was to use language that was close to the everyday language, even for those in low and rustic life. He made them into a new species in English poetry. The poet gave rhyme and meter to an apt expression of thought. This was evident in the works of Gellert. Gellert gave rhyme and meter to expressions written in the way people talk everyday.

Coleridge cites a passage from Chaucer's Troilus and Cressida to show how the poetry is rich in composition. He feels that the difference between the older and modern poets is that the first group used natural language to convey fantastic thoughts while the other group uses fantastic language to convey trivial thoughts. The results are different feelings in the reader and not always the response that the poet seeks to elicit.