ATo transform language and experiences into something profound.
BTo strictly imitate real-life speech.
CTo focus only on logical reasoning.
DTo limit creativity in poetic expression
Answer:
A. To transform language and experiences into something profound.
Read Explanation:
oleridge believed that the role of imagination in poetry was to transform language and experiences into something profound. In Biographia Literaria (1817), he described imagination as the poet’s most powerful faculty, enabling them to shape and elevate reality through artistic creation.
Key Aspects of Coleridge’s View on Imagination in Poetry:
Imagination Transforms Reality
Coleridge argued that the poet’s imagination does not merely imitate reality but reshapes and elevates it.
Through imagination, ordinary experiences and language are transformed into something deep, meaningful, and artistic.
Two Types of Imagination: Primary and Secondary
Primary Imagination: The fundamental human ability to perceive and make sense of the world. It is unconscious and universal.
Secondary Imagination: The poet’s creative power, which actively reshapes and reinterprets reality, turning it into art and poetry.
Imagination Unites Form and Meaning
Unlike mere fancy (which he saw as decorative), imagination creates a unified, organic whole in poetry.
It ensures that language, emotion, and structure work together to form a coherent artistic vision.
Poetry is an Act of Creation, Not Just Reflection
While Wordsworth emphasized poetry as an expression of emotions recollected in tranquility, Coleridge saw it as an act of creative transformation.
The poet does not just record feelings but shapes and elevates them through imagination.
Imagination Gives Poetry Depth and Symbolism
Coleridge believed that great poetry often works on multiple levels, using imagination to infuse simple images with deeper symbolic meaning.
This allows poetry to resonate with readers in profound and universal ways.