In the fifth chapter of The Art of Travel, Alain de Botton goes on a trip to the Lake District. He takes his girlfriend, 'M', and a paperback copy of The Prelude. Applying his talent for summary to the latter, he explains that it prescribes 'regular travel through nature' as 'a necessary antidote to the evils of the city'. Not being the sort to take a poet at his word, de Botton sets out to test Wordsworth's 'suggestion'. With 'M' in tow, he goes for a long walk.

LRB 22 August 2002 | PDF Download