I love Coleridge ... and I am very willing to allow that…
“I love Coleridge ... and I am very willing to allow that he has more imagination than Wordsworth, and more of thereal poet. But after all Coleridge is nothing more than an intellectual opium-eatera man of many crude though lovely thoughtsof confused though brilliant imagination, liable to much errorerror even of the heart, very sensual in many ofhis ideas of pleasureindolent to a degree, and evidently and always thinkingwithout discipline; letting the fine brains which God gave him work themselves irregularly and without end or objectand carry him whither they will. Wordsworth has a grand, consistent, perfectly disciplined, all grasping intellectfor which nothing is too small, nothing too great, arranging everything indue relations, divinely pure inits conventions of pleasure, majestic in the equanimity of its benevolenceintense as white fire with chastened feeling. Coleridge may be the greater poet, but surely it admits of no question which is the greater man.”
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
Ruskin contrasts Coleridge's imaginative, undisciplined mind with Wordsworth's disciplined, all‑encompassing intellect, suggesting greatness lies in moral character more than poetic talent.
In simple terms: Imagination vs discipline; moral character matters more than talent.
Key Takeaway
Value disciplined intellect and moral steadiness.
Themes
imagination
discipline
character
poetry
intellect
Mood
thoughtful
analytical
critical
Type
literary
philosophical
comparative
When to use this quote
- Literary criticism
- personal reflection
- teaching literature
- self‑assessment
Key Concepts
Romanticism
Victorian criticism
moral philosophy
Questions to Reflect On
- How does discipline shape creative work?
- Can imagination thrive without structure?
A Different Perspective
Coleridge’s brilliance can lead to erratic, ungrounded output.