William Butler Yeats

Literature / Poet Datebook: June 13 
 
Life and works of Irish poet and playwright William Butler Yeats, one of the most influential 20^th century writers and widely considered one of the greatest poets of the English language.

 

 

William Butler Yeats' work was greatly influenced by the heritage and politics of Ireland.Yeats won the Nobel Prize of literature in 1923. He is best known for his plays The Land of Heart's Desire and Cathleen Ni Houlihan.

Early Life of W.B. Yeats
 
William Butler Yeats was born on June 13, 1865 in Sandymount, Dublin. His family was Anglo-Irish, that is, Protestant upper class that felt strong ties to England. His father, John B. Yeats, a painter, moved the family to London when he was three. So, for much of his early life he lived sometimes in London and sometimes in Ireland, but he was always attached to his homeland, especially captivated by the landscape of County Sligo in northwestern Ireland.
 
Yeats was half-blind in one eye; he didn't do well in school. At the age of 15, his family moved back to Ireland, to Howth on Dublin Bay. Five years later, the Dublin University Review published his first two poems.

Enjoy this wonderful performance, beautiful and heartwarming interpretation by Australian soprano Taryn Fiebig and harpist Jayne Hockley of W.B. Yeats' "Down by the Salley Gardens", from the Album Thyme & Roses, licensed by The Orchard Music (on behalf of MBT Publishing); Imagem Music (publishing) US, and 1 music rights societies. (YouTube, uploaded by artandcode. Accessed May 29, 2018.)




The Young Poet
 
In London he became increasingly interested in Eastern philosophy and religions, the supernatural and Irish folklore. It was also this time in 1889 that Yeats fell in love with Maud Gonne, a beautiful Irish actress who was involved in the political struggle to end English rule in Ireland. His inability of attaining Maud would haunt him through his life. He proposed in 1891 and again in 1916 but was refused both times.
 
His mystical beliefs and love for Gonne inspired The Wanderings of Oisin and Other Poems, published when he was 24. The poetry is filled with sad longings yet beautiful. Yeats believed that the Anglo-Irish and Irish could be united under a rich although mystical Celtic heritage. 

Below, I'd like to share one of my favourite poems by Yeats:

 

Aedh Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven

Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.

~ W.B. Yeats ~

(Link credit: "Aedh Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven", poets.org)

Kind thanks to Ilse Isler, my friend at Facebook, for this straightforward heartwarming paraphrase: 

 

"If I could offer you the secret of the sky
Embroidered with golden light and silver reflections,
The mysterious secret, the eternal secret
of night and day, of life and time
With all my Love I will put it on your feet!"

 
Later Years
 
In 1896 Yeats returned to live permanently in Ireland. He met a wealthy aristocrat, Lady Gregory, whose interest in Irish traditions matched his own. Together in 1904 they formed the Abbey Theatre group.
 
In a Vision, Yeats set out his philosophy, his belief in myths and the meanings of the symbols he used. As he aged, his writing became stronger and more solid. His best work is in The Tower, The Winding Stair and Last Poems and Plays. The Tower includes some of his famous works, including "Sailing to Byzantium," "Among School Children," and "Leda and the Swan."
 
Legacy of W.B. Yeats
 
Yeats founded the National Literary Society and what would become the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. Yeats received the Nobel Prize in literature in 1923. He also served as an Irish Free State senator for six years.  He died on January 28, 1939, aged 73.
 
Works by William Butler Yeats 
 
The Wanderings of Oisin and Other Poems, 1889
The Celtic Twilight, 1893
The Land of Heart's Desire, 1894
The Secret Rose, 1897
Cathleen Ni Houlihan, 1902
The Second Coming, 1921
A Vision, 1925
The Tower, 1928
The Winding Stair, 1928
Last Poems and Plays, 1936-39

A famous poem by Yeats: "Down by the Salley Gardens"

"Down by the salley gardens my love and I did meet;
She passed the salley gardens with little snow-white feet.
She bid me take love easy, as the leaves grow on the tree;
But I, being young and foolish, with her did not agree.
In a field by the river my love and I did stand,
And on my leaning shoulder she lay her snow-white hand.
She bid me take life easy, as the grass grows on the weirs;
But I was young and foolish, and now am full of tears."



Resources: 


Dictionary of Writers, edited by Rosemary Goring, Larousse, 1994
The Cambridge Literature in English, New Edition, edited by Ian Ousby,Cambridge, 1993

Photo Credit:

W.B. Yeats. en.wikipedia.org / Public Domain  

Note:  This article was originally written and published by me for Suite101.com, June 16, 2008. It's an abridged version. / Tel

 
(c) June 2009. Updated August 27, 2023.  Tel. Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved.