This work explores an aspect of Yeats's writing largely ignored until now: namely, his wide-ranging absorption in S.T. Coleridge. Gibson explores the consistent and densely woven allusions to Coleridge in Yeats's prose and poetry, often in conjunction with other Romantic figures, arguing that the earlier poet provided him with both a model of philosopher - 'the sage' - and an interpretation of metaphysical ideas which were to have a resounding effect on his later poetry, and upon his rewriting of A Vision.
Provides a new sense of the historical specificity of W.B. Yeats's writings over a wide range of genres, leading to innovative readings of classic texts. >
This book focuses on W. B. Yeats’s critical writings, an aspect of his oeuvre which has been given limited treatment so far. It traces his critical work from his earliest articles, through to his occult treatises, and all the way to his last pamphlets, in which he sought to delineate the idea of a literary culture: a community of people willing to credit poetry with the central role in imagining and organising social praxis throughout society. The chapters of this study investigate the contexts in which Yeats’s thought developed, his many disputes over the shape of Irish cultural politics, the future of poetry and the place literature occupies in the world. What transpires is an image of Yeats who is strung between the impulses of faith in the existence of a supernatural order and ironic scepticism as to the possibility of ever capturing that order in language. This study is distinguished by its grounding of Yeats's critical agenda in a broader context through textual analysis. In addition, it organises and systematises his conceptions of poetry and its social role through its approach to his criticism as a fully-fledged area of his artistic practice. The monograph has been written within the framework of the project financed by The National Science Centre, Cracow, Poland, pursuant to the decision number DEC-2013/09/D/HS2/02782.
This collection commemorates the centenary of decisive events in the history of international Modernism. The second decade of the twentieth century witnessed an extraordinary burst of creativity and inquiry which left an indelible mark in literature, music, and the visual arts, as well as in their respective theoretical frameworks. As with other moments of crisis, the period was exceptionally rich in innovation and experimentation. For literature and the arts, it was also a time of great clashes, both contextually, most obviously because authors were faced with the events of the Great War, and internally, through radical contestation of the aesthetic and intellectual legacies of the past. The passing of one hundred years provides an opportunity for homage, as well as critical assessment of intentions and accomplishments. The present volume brings together the work of scholars who focus on both early and late Modernism and its long-ranging cultural and literary reverberations, in order to widen the reader’s perspective of the significance of the modernist movement for contemporary art, theory and criticism. Contributions range from the Little Magazines and James Joyce to post-World War II theatre of the absurd; from literature in English to literature written in other languages, such as French and Portuguese.
Coleridge has been perceived as the youthful author of a few brilliant poems. This study argues that his poetry is actually a continuous process of experimentation and provides a new perspective on both familiar and unfamiliar poems, as well as the relation between Coleridge's poetry and philosophical thinking.
This book asserts that Oscar Wilde (1854 – 1900) was a major precursor of W.B. Yeats (1865 – 1939), and shows how Wilde’s image and intellect set in train a powerful influence within Yeats’s creative imagination that remained active throughout the poet’s life. The intellectual concepts, metaphysical speculations and artistic symbols and images which Yeats appropriated from Wilde changed the poet’s perspective and informed the imaginative system of beliefs that Yeats formulated as the basis of his dramatic and poetic work. Section One, 'Influence and Identity' (1888 – 1895), explores the personal relationship of these two writers, their nationality and historical context as factors in influence. Section Two, 'Mask and Image' (1888 – 1917), traces the creative process leading to Yeats’s construction of the antithetical mask, and his ideas on image, in relation to the role of Wilde as his precursor. Finally, 'Salomé: Symbolism, Dance and Theories of Being' (1891 – 1939) concentrates on the immense influence that Wilde’s symbolist play, Salomé, wrought on Yeats’s imaginative work and creative sensibility.
The first volume of essays devoted to W. B. Yeats's 'A Vision' and the associated system developed by Yeats and his wife, George. 'A Vision' is all-encompassing in its stated aims and scope, and it invites a wide range of approaches--as demonstrated in the essays collected here, written by the foremost scholars in the field.
Yeats, Philosophy, and the Occult collects seven new essays on aspects of Yeats's thought and reading, from ancient and modern philosophy and cosmological doctrines, mysticism and esoteric thought.
Examines the life and writings of William Butler Yeats, including a biographical sketch, detailed synopses of his works, social and historical influences, and more.
This book is a resource to enable scholars and students in Yeats studies to explore the materials in his library, which, together with his unpublished papers and manuscripts, forms part of the writer’s archive in the National Library. Generally, this first volume describes the evidence that he and his wife, George, left in books by other authors, including extensive indications of close reading and thinking on a surprising range of subjects. This book could not have been written without the generous participation of the Yeats family over many years. Their legacy, now entrusted to the National Library, is robust and endless in potential. This book is about individual cases but also the building of an oeuvre. In short, this book enriches our understanding of Yeats’s accomplishment as a writer in over fifty years of creative effort and nearly seventy-four years of abundant life.
