
The Life of Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Birth-place of Coleridge — Slight Sketch of his Parents — Whimsical Anecdotes he Used to Relate of his Father, &c — As a Pastor, how Much Beloved — His Brothers and Sisters Enumerated — The Death of his Father — His Entrance at Christ's Hospital — Lamb's Account of him when at School — Writes this Account under the Name of Elia — Lamb's Admission that he Meant Coleridge for the "Friendless Boy" — The Delicacy of his Stomach — His First Attempt at Making Verse when a School Boy — And Continuation of his Sufferings when at School — His Water Excursions, the Origin of Most of his Subsequent Suffering.
Coleridge's First Entry at Jesus' College — His Simplicity and Want of Worldly Tact — Anecdotes and Different Accounts of Him During his Residence at College — Intimacy with Middleton — with Southey — Quits College for Bristol.
Fragment of a Journey over the Brocken, &c. in 1799.
Leaves the Lakes on Account of his Health for Malta — his Employment in Malta in 1805 — goes to Syracuse and Rome — Winters at Naples 15th of December, 1806.
Christobel
Of the Profanation of the Sacred Word "The People."
Coleridge's Arrival at Highgate — Publication of 'Christabel' — 'Biographia Literaria', &c.
The Conclusion to Part the First.
A tender portrait emerges from the pages of this memoir, written by a devoted confidant who knew Samuel Taylor Coleridge intimately in his later years. The author weaves together personal recollections, unpublished letters, and stories from early friends, offering a voice that feels both reverent and candid. Readers are invited into a quiet, reflective narrative that balances scholarly care with heartfelt affection.
The biography begins by tracing Coleridge’s modest beginnings in the Devon village of Ottery St Mary, where the son of a learned vicar grew up amid books and sermons. It follows his schooling at Christ’s Hospital, his first attempts at verse, and the delicate health that would shadow his life. Through anecdotes of youthful camaraderie with figures like Charles Lamb and the early stirrings of his poetic imagination, the work captures the promise and the gentle struggles of a mind poised for greatness, without venturing beyond his formative years.
Full title
The Life of Samuel Taylor Coleridge 1838
Language
en
Duration
~8 hours (490K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Clytie Siddall, Stan Goodman, and Distributed Proofreaders
Release date
2005-09-01
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
1782–1839
Best known as the close friend and physician of Samuel Taylor Coleridge, this English surgeon wrote one of the most personal early accounts of the poet’s later life. His work blends medical observation, friendship, and literary history in a way that still feels unusually direct.
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