Although it is well known that the Romantics were obsessed with Shakespeare, little attention has been paid to the ways in which he influenced both their creative practices and theories of the imagination. This work presents the fascinating picture of how the Romantics read Shakespeare and the ways in which his work inspired and informed their own poetry. The book provides the first full critical discussion of Shakespeare and Wordsworth, explores the influence of the plays on the poetry of Blake and Coleridge, and offers a fresh account of Shakespeare's powerful presence in the letters and poems of Keats and Byron, and in Shelley's dramas. Taking issue with prevalent deconstructionist theories and Harold Bloom's ideas on "the anxiety of influence," Bate instead carefully illustrates the ways in which initial attempts at blind imitation were transformed into graceful poetic echo and allusion.
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