Sense Impressions and the

Abstract

I first became aware of the significance of Wordsworth's descriptions of sensory experience in Tintern Abbey in a Romantic Poetry Seminar. While writing a paper for the Seminar I found that, although many critics stressed mystical experience in the poem, the poet's growth to moral character seemed to be a major aspect of the poem that the mystical interpretations overshadowed. On closer examination I was impressed by the psychological accuracy of Wordsworth's descriptions of his experiences in the poem. My purpose in this study is to show how the mental processes described in Tintern Abbey represent the way Wordsworth's sense impressions worked to shape his moral character.