The British poet states his belief in that philosophy is the basis of criticism.

First published in 1817, Biographia Literaria is a seminal work of literary criticism and autobiography. Written by the influential Romantic poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the book includes biographical sketches of Coleridge's contemporaries, as well as extensive discussions of literary theory and criticism. This edition, edited and expanded by Coleridge's nephew Henry Nelson Coleridge, provides valuable insight into the intellectual and cultural milieu of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

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This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Coleridge, with his superior philosophical training and profundity of thought, became one of England's greatest critics, despite his digressiveness and verbosity. The Biographia Literaria (1817), a collection of his literary life and opininions, is both autobiographical and critical. Intended as a mere preface to a collected volume of his poems, explaining and justifying his own style and practice in poetry, the work grew under his hands to a literary autobiography, including, together with many facts concerning his education and studies and his early literary adventures, an extended criticism of Wordsworth's theory of poetry as given in the preface to the ‘Lyrical Ballads’ and a statement of Coleridge's philosophical views.