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William WordsworthShe Was a Phantom of Delight
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Further Reading & Resources
Related Poems
"To a Highland Girl" by William Wordsworth (1804)
The Wordsworths went on a walking tour of Scotland in 1803, and Wordsworth wrote “To a Highland Girl” the following year. In it, he expresses his admiration and appreciation for a girl he observed on the walk in terms that will remind the reader of “She Was a Phantom of Delight,” written just one year later. Indeed, much later in his life, Wordsworth commented that four lines of “To a Highland Girl” served as the inspiration for “Phantom.” He did not, however, identify the lines explicitly, and scholars continue to debate the issue.
"Our Walk Was Far among the Ancient Trees" by William Wordsworth (1799)
Wordsworth wrote “Our Walk Was Far among the Ancient Trees” in 1799. He habitually renamed places he encountered on his walks after friends whose characteristics suited the landscape. In this case, he named a secluded and calm spot in the woods at Rydal after Mary and dedicated the poem to her. He clearly regarded Mary as a calming influence in his life. Later, he commented that this poem should be read before “She Was a Phantom of Delight” to illustrate an earlier phase in his relationship with his wife.
"To a Painter" and "On the Same Subject" by William Wordsworth (1842)
Wordsworth wrote these two sonnets in 1840 and published them in 1842. They, too, are about his wife Mary, prompted by a painting of her by Margaret Gillies in 1839, when Mary was sixty-nine years old. In the first sonnet, Wordsworth says that although the painter has done excellent work, he (that is, Wordsworth) will always see his wife as youthful. In the second sonnet, he acknowledges the passage of time, but thinks that old age is beautiful too, because of the virtue, goodness and large-heartedness his wife brings to it. Wordsworth commented that these four poems—“Our Walk Was Far among the Ancient Trees,” “She Was a Phantom of Delight,” and the two later sonnets—should be read in sequence as a record of his long affection for his wife
"The Silken Tent" by Robert Frost (1942)
Like “She Was a Phantom of Delight,” the American poet Robert Frost’s “The Silken Tent” (1942) is a love poem. The poet compares the woman he loves to a silken tent in summer. The woman was Kay Morrison, with whom Frost had an affair shortly after his wife Elinor died in 1938. Morrison was married; in the poem, Frost acknowledges that she is not bound to any one person. He sings her praises nonetheless.
Further Literary Resources
Radical Wordsworth: The Poet Who Changed the World by Jonathan Bate (2020)
Radical Wordsworth: The Poet Who Changed the World is a biography of Wordsworth released in 2020 to coincide with the 250th anniversary of his birth. Bate examines the large role Wordsworth played in the cultural shift that took place in the Romantic era, both in literary and societal terms. One of the more startling revelations in the book is Bate’s claim that the origin of the famous quarrel between Wordsworth and Coleridge occurred when Coleridge discovered Wordsworth in bed with Sara Hutchinson one day in 1806. This was problematic because, first, Coleridge had long been in love with Sara, and second, Wordsworth had been married to Mary, Sara’s sister, for four years at the time of the incident. The biographer suggests that William and Sara were merely reading, a claim that was met with understandable skepticism by reviewers.
The Cambridge Introduction to William Wordsworth by Emma Mason (2010)
This thorough introduction to Wordsworth offers readings of all his major poems as well as some lesser-known ones. Mason also gives a history of the reception of Wordsworth’s poetry from the Romantic era to the twenty-first century. Finally, she provides an annotated guide to further reading.
William Wordsworth’s Poetry by Daniel Robinson (2010)
This reader’s guide to Wordsworth’s poetry includes an account of Wordsworth’s poetic career and explains the literary, philosophical, and political contexts for his work. It includes a particularly illuminating chapter on Wordsworth’s peak creative period (1797-1807). The book includes an annotated bibliography.
Listen to Poem
This outstanding recitation of the poem by renowned English actor John Neville (1925-2011), recorded in 1959, is available on YouTube.
Wordsworth’s great-great-great-grandson Antony Wordsworth provides an excellent reading of the poem, though he omits the word “else” in Line 7 of Stanza 1, as well as the entirety of Line 9 in the same stanza.
Related Titles
By William Wordsworth
