Title: From Natura per se to Subjective Nature: William Wordsworth’s Conception of Nature and Poetical Presentations through the Notion of Knowing as a Clue

Abstract: This article focuses on William Wordsworth’s conception of nature as the subject-matter of study. In terms of relation, Wordsworth’s notion of knowing serves as the basis for his conception of nature, and nature is integrated as the major objective for knowing, existing as an essential part of it. In terms of connotation, nature in Wordsworth’s conception not only possesses natural attributes, but also exhibits a distinct and strong subjectivity, serving as the embodiment of human passions. In the poetical works of Wordsworth, the conception of nature is richly represented. To summarize, Wordsworth’s conception of nature is born out of the empiricist tradition of British philosophy, and serves as a concise expression of certain Romantic literary ideas.

Keywords: William Wordsworth, conception of nature, notion of knowing, studies in history of ideas

Authors: Wei Wang, Professor, School of English Studies, Dalian University of Foreign Languages, Dalian, Liaoning, China; Meng Pan, School of English Studies, Dalian University of Foreign Languages, Dalian, Liaoning, China.

DOI: 10.19967/j.cnki.flc.2025.01.010