William Butler Yeats is known as the largest English poet in the late XIX - early XX centuries, who did a lot to transform the poetic style, as well as as a playwright, essayist and prose writer. In the list of books recommended by Hemingway for reading to young authors, Yeats' Autobiography was also indicated. His poetry was honored by eminent translators. Not only how the poet William Butler Yates proved himself. His poems are certainly very valuable, but William Butler is also known as a playwright. Yeats’s dramaturgy concept had a strong influence on Thomas Eliot, who characterized his predecessor as “an integral part of the spirit of our century.”
The origin, youth and features of early creativity
The English-language poet of interest to us was born in the capital of Ireland, in the family of a famous artist who belonged to the Pre-Raphaelite school (to which, by the way, the Kipling family was close). He did not receive any decent formal education, but he studied a lot on his own. Soon became interested in literature.
The first verses are marked by the strong influence of Shelley and Spencer. He began to write them back in 1882, and the first publication dates back to 1885. Then, in 1885, William participated in the organization of the Dublin Alchemical Society, engaged in the occult sciences. The poet will remain interested in them for life.
William began to print at the age of 20, and after 4 years he published the first book of poetry. Raised on the ideas of the Pre-Raphaelites, the young man, he said, experienced a "monkey hatred" of rationalism and the practicality of modernity. It seemed to him that even poetry was struck by this perniciousness, he sought salvation in symbolism, believing that the image of beauty hidden from our eyes cannot be recreated otherwise than resorting to the use of symbols. However, even then, Yeats demanded from art not only an emotional impact on the reader, but also a moral influence.
Educational activities
The poet devoted much effort to enlightenment. In 1891, he organized the Irish Literary Society in London, then the National Irish Union in Dublin, vigorously participated in the work of the Society of Poets, took care of the popularization of Irish folklore. One of his accomplishments was the creation of the so-called Gaelic League - a public union whose goal was the development of Irish national culture, the revival of the native language and the transition to literature based on folk traditions.
The Irish people have a difficult history. The "Green Island" was inhabited by Celtic tribes as far back as the 4th century BC. In modern times, in the XII century, Ireland came under the rule of England. Only in 1921 she received the status of dominion, and in 1949 - independence. Northern Ireland, often called Ulster, remained with the British. Alien domination was cruel, the laws did not allow the Irish to use their native language under pain of the death penalty. By the middle of the last century, the struggle for their culture and language was complicated by mass emigration; Now there are as many Irish people abroad as in Ireland. The number of people using their native language has waned. Even now that the situation is getting better, less than a quarter of citizens speak Irish.
Irish Literary Revival
The struggle against the decline of culture was set by the movement "Irish Literary Revival", within the framework of which the Gaelic League arose and the beginning of which is associated with the release in 1893 of a poetry collection, authored by William Yates ("Celtic Twilight"). The participants in the movement did not reduce their goals to narrow-language problems, and many of them, including William, wrote in English. "Gaelic is my national but not native language," said William Butler Yeats. Quotes from him were often used to propagate this movement. The tasks of the "Irish Literary Revival" were large-scale - to awaken the national spirit, preserve folk traditions, and defend the independence of the country's culture.
Creation of the Irish Literary Theater
As part of the movement, William Butler Yeats founded the Irish Literary Theater in Dublin in 1899 and was its director almost until his death, for about 40 years. He worked on the repertoire for his theater himself, addressing problems mainly to the national epic and native history. Here, Yeats was the biggest innovator. He managed to create a peculiar concept of "poetic theater", the antithesis dominated by naturalism.
Personal life and love poems
In poetry, which became Yeats's main vocation, he was also constantly on the lookout. His early work was rooted in mythology and fed on the idea of ​​"Eternal Beauty." Reality hardly attracted the poet. A kind of tragic flavor in the poetry of Yeats brought love. At the age of 24, he met the young beauty Maud Goni, an actress and revolutionary, and for many years had passionate feelings for her that remained inseparable. Only at the age of 52, for the fourth time having received a refusal from Maud to unite their lives, started a family of William Butler Yates. “He thirsts for a cloak of heaven ...” is the name of one of his poems related to love lyrics. By the way, lines from it sound at the beginning of the film "Equilibrium". Many do not know that their author is William Butler Yeats. “But I am poor and I have only dreams,” the lyrical hero of this poem says, complaining that he cannot spread “heavenly silk” at the feet of his beloved.
Confessional and Civic Poetry
Over time, Yates’s work marked a turning point. "Eternal beauty", verses about love - all this gradually receded into the past. Starting with the collection Responsibility (1914), William Butler is increasingly drawn to confessional and civic poetry. The poems of the collection convey a tense social atmosphere. In the ever-turbulent Catholic Ireland, discontent was accumulating over the rule of Protestant England. The crisis was resolved by the Dublin Uprising of 1916. Ireland proclaimed itself a republic, but the insurgents lasted only five days. William Butler Yates was in London at that time, and the events came as a complete surprise to him, but they left a deep mark in his mind.
It took a painful reappraisal of the past. Instead of mythology involved in mysticism, Yeats's work includes the history of the country with its real heroes. The bloody reality of the uprising, which claimed 450 lives, the death of its leaders prompted the poet to abandon the lofty aristocracy, to take a fresh look at people.
The tragic tonality of lyrics
Life did not allow to find a firm support. The onset of guerrilla warfare with the British conquerors caused Yeats bitter disappointment. He was overcome by fear of a chain reaction of hatred and violence. The tragic tonality is characteristic of most poems of this period. But, of course, in the lyrics of Yeats and funny chords. An example is the poem "Violinist from Dunia".
The authority of the poet
Yeats's poetry was widely recognized. Apparently, one should not look for hyperbolization in the formula of the Swedish Academy, where it is noted that his work "gives an expression of the spiritual essence of an entire nation." The authority of the poet was great. From 1922 to 1928, Yeats was a member of the Irish Senate, one of three senators who advised the government on education, literature and art. His reasoned speeches contributed to the preservation of many national monuments. However, for the most part, attempts to intervene in politics did not yield results, and he refused the honorary title.
Senate speeches
Yeats’s Senate speeches make it possible to judge his assessment of the role of culture in society. In one of them he said that he had no hope to see the united Ireland himself, to see the accession of Ulster; but he is convinced that in the end this will happen, and not because the Irish will fight for it, but because they will manage their country well. William Butler Yeats noted that this can be done by creating a culture that will represent your country and that will attract the imagination of young people.
The last decade of life and work
In the last decade, his life seemed to be going quietly. Great moral and material support was the Nobel Prize, which he received in 1923. The poet is again full of spiritual and physical strength, speaks of approaching old age with calm humor. But this is only external calm, the poet’s spiritual life is still full of struggles. Over the years, everyone respected author, looking back at the past, thinking about the future, asks himself one question more alarmingly than the other. Fresh themes arise in his work, new ideas are hatched, and the poetic technique is changing. The poet, as it were, constantly refutes himself. The state of the search did not leave it to the end.
It should also be noted that poems related to the late period of his work have a more personal character than earlier works. In particular, they mention the children of William, presented Yates's thoughts about his aging.
For the last fifteen years of his life, Yeats has been recognized as a national Irish poet. He was often ill, but continued to create. In the last decade of his life, he created works that are marked by outstanding craftsmanship, great passion and imagination. Among them, such collections as The Tower (1928) and The Spiral Staircase, created in 1933, should be noted.
The poet died on the French Riviera, in the town of Cap Martin, January 28, 1939. Death came after another illness. According to the will of Yeats, which was indicated in his poetic testament, in 1948 his remains were reburied in Ireland.
Disputes around the poet's personality and work
Sharp transitions were characteristic of Yates the artist throughout the nearly 60-year career. He often refused what was achieved, changed and varied his works. The facts of Yates's life and literary biography are also contradictory. All his life he was fond of mystical teachings. This was reflected in his work. In particular, William Yates was keen on spiritualism. Vision is a book published in 1925 in which the author interprets psychological and historical moments from the perspective of mysticism. At one time, William Butler even believed in primitive fascist demagogy.
Accordingly, the opinions of critics about his worldview positions often mutually exclude one another: Yeats is either a revolutionary, a reactionary, a traditionalist, or a modernist. Judgments are supported by links to articles, sayings, poetic lines. Disputes around the personality and work of William Butler Yeats have become a tradition. One thing is clear - he was a man constantly striving for new spiritual beings. And it was this property that prompted him to create poetry, new in form and content, which became an integral part of modern culture.