Cowper

Born into a distinguished Whig family in 1731, William Cowper grew up in the quiet rectory of Berkhamsted, surrounded by a lineage of judges, clergymen, and poets. From a young age he displayed a sharp intellect and a tender sensitivity that made the ordinary world feel overwhelming, a tension that would later shape his writing. His early years were marked by bouts of melancholy and a sense of being out of step with his peers, a feeling he would later describe as a singular temper.

Despite these inner struggles, Cowper emerged as a bridge between the polished classicism of Pope and the burgeoning Romantic spirit. His early verses, moral satires, and short poems celebrated nature and personal feeling, while his correspondence revealed a keen mind attuned to the religious awakenings of his time. Listeners discover in his letters a candid portrait of a poet striving to reconcile his fragile health with a deep desire to speak truth to the heart of eighteenth‑century England.