William Butler Yeats

William Butler Yeats
“William Butler Yeats is widely considered to be one of the greatest poets of the twentieth century. He belonged to the Protestant, AngloIrish minority that had controlled the economic, political, social, and cultural life of Ireland since at least the end of the seventeenth century.
Most members of this minority considered themselves English people who merely happened to have been born in Ireland, but Yeats was
staunch in affirming his Irish nationality. Although he lived in London for fourteen years of his childhood (and kept a permanent home there
during the first half of his adult life), Yeats maintained his cultural roots, featuring Irish legends and heroes in many of his poems and plays.
He was equally firm in adhering to his self-image as an artist. This conviction led many to accuse him of elitism, but it also unquestionably
contributed to his greatness. William Butler Yeats is widely considered to be one of the greatest poets of the twentieth century. He belonged
to the Protestant, Anglo-Irish minority that had controlled the economic, political, social, and cultural life of Ireland since at least the end of
the seventeenth century. Unlike many of heritage, Yeats was staunch in affirming his Irish nationality. Although he lived in London for fourteen years of his childhood, Yeats maintained his cultural roots, featuring Irish legends and heroes in many of his poems and plays. He was
equally firm in adhering to his self-image as an artist. This conviction led many to accuse him of elitism, but it also unquestionably contributed to his greatness.”
Poetry Foundation
Yeats was amongst those responsible for the Irish Literary Revival. The movement was connected with a renewed interest in the history of Ireland’s Gaelic
legacy as well as the emergence of Irish nationalism in the mid 19th century.
Yeats, Lady Greagory, Edward Martyn and George Moore established the Irish
Literary Theater, which fostered the creativity of Irish playwrights and gave rise
to the Abbey Theatre also called the National Theatre of Ireland.
During the entire first decade of the twentieth century Yeats was extremely active
in the management of the Abbey Theatre company, choosing plays, hiring and
firing actors and managers, and arranging tours for the company. At this time he
also wrote ten plays, and the simple, direct style of dialogue required for the
stage became an important consideration in his poems as well.
One of the most important impacts on his poetry
was his friendship with Maud Gonne. Yeats was
fascinated by her, fell in love and courted her for
over thirty years. Through the years, he proposed
to her four times before proposing to her daughter
who also rejected his offer. Maud was a leader in
the efforts of Irish Nationalism and inspired his
efforts greatly. For Yeats, and many others, she
became the face of their struggle.
Yeats’ interest in Irish nationalism was encouraged through his relationship with
Maud Gonne, an Irish revolutionary. Irish Nationalists sought a united Ireland.
The poet was against the use of violence, but his political leanings are reflected
in his poetry. His poem, Easter, 1916 reflects his emotional state concerning the
rebellion of Easter Rising, an effort on the part of Irish republicans to end British
rule in Ireland. It was organized by the Irish Republican Brotherhood; an organization Yeats joined due to the influence of Gonne.
Yeats dedicated his play Cathleen ni Houlihan to Maud Gonne.
The figure Kathleen or Cathleen ni Houlihan was a personification of Ireland who was a symbol of Irish patriotism particularly
as an independent and separate Irish state. During times of
trouble she was said to travel across Ireland and rally young
men to join her in battle. In the play, the title character appears
first as an old woman and later as a young woman with “the
walk of a queen” and urges young men to fight for her.
Cathleen ni Houlihan
by W.B. Yeats:
OLD WOMAN.:
It is a hard service they take that help me. Many
that are red-cheeked now will be pale-cheeked;
many that have been free to walk the hills and the
bogs and the rushes will be sent to walk hard
streets in far countries; many a good plan will be
broken; many that have gathered money will not
stay to spend it; many a child will be born, and
there will be no father at its christening to give it a
name. They that had red cheeks will have pale
cheeks for my sake; and for all that, they will think
they are well paid.
[She goes out; her voice is heard outside singing.]
They shall be remembered for ever,
They shall be alive for ever,
They shall be speaking for ever,
The people shall hear them for ever.
As a young child and the son of an artist, Yeats was impacted
by the Pre-Raphaelite movement, which was heavily influenced
by Romanticism and a desire to revive the artistic style of 15th
century Italian art. Though not a considered a Pre-Raphaelite,
he shared their love of symbolism; the influence of the PreRaphaelites can be seen in his poem The Wanderings of Osin.
The mysticism of the movement also impacted him, but in his
later years that interest turned to focus on the occult.
After making his final proposal to Gonne in 1916 and her subsequent refusal, he began to court her daughter, Iseult Gonne, then 21 years old. Only
months after being rejected by her mother, he proposed to Iseult. In September of that same year, he proposed to Georgie Hyde- Lees, she was 25.
Despite the age difference, their marriage was relatively successful. He
became fascinated with her abilities with automatic writing. They had two
children; however, the poet went on to have other romantic relationships.
Yeats’ interest in mysticism turned to a fascination with the occult. He was admitted to the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, an organization
that both studied and practiced occultism, metaphysics, and the paranormal. Much like the Masons, the order had various levels one could
achieve through study and self-awareness. Yeats
wanted to attain the tenth level of magi. He was
an active member for 32 years, and his wife was
also a member of the organization.
Further Reading:
Beckett, J.C. (1966). The making of modern Ireland, 1603—1923. New York: Knopf.
Brown, K. (2011). The Yeats circle, verbal and visual relations in Ireland, 1880—1939. Burlington, VT: Ashgate.
Byrd, T.L. (1978). The early poetry of W.B. Yeats: the poetic quest. Port Washington, NY: Kennikat.
Foster, R.F. (1998). W.B. Yeats: a life. Oxford: Oxford University.
Harper, G. M. (1974). Yeats’s Golden Dawn. New York: Barnes & Noble
Harper, G.M. (1975). Yeats and the Occult. London: Macmillan.
Hough, G. (1984). The mystery religion of W. B. Yeats. Totowa, NJ: Barnes & NobleSaul, G.B. (1964). Age of
Yeats. New York: Dell.
Innes, C.L. (1993). Woman and nation in Irish literature and society, 1880—1935. Athens,GA: University of
Georgia.
Jeffares, Norman. (1980). Yeats, Sligo, and Ireland: Essays to mark the 21st Yeats International Summer
School. Gerrards Cross, England: Smythe.
Kirby, Sheelah. (1962). The Yeats country; a guide to places in the West of Ireland associated with the life
and writings of William Butler Yeats. Dublin, Ireland: Dolmen.
MacDonagh, O. (1983). Irish culture and nationalism, 1750—1950. Dublin: Gill and Macmillan.
O’Driscoll, R. (1971). Theatre and nationalism in twentieth-century Ireland. Toronto: University of Toronto.
Parkinson, T.F. (1964). W.B. Yeats, the later poetry. Berkeley: University of California.
Peterson, R. F. (1982). William Butler Yeats. Boston: Twayne.
Tuohy, F. (1976). Yeats. New York: Macmillan.
Vindler, Helen. (2007). Our secret discipline: Yeats and lyric form. Camridge: Belknap.
Yeats, W. B. (1922). Plays in prose and verse; written for an Irish theatre, and generally with the help of a
friend. London: Macmillan.
Yeats, W.B. (1967). Ideas of good and evil. New York: Russell & Russell.
Yeats, W.B. (1989). The poems. New York: Macmillan.
Zwerdling, A. (1965). Yeats and the heroic ideal. New York: New York University.