William Butler Yeats: Modernism

William Butler Yeats: Modernism

William Butler Yeats is an Irish poet from the nineteenth century. William Butler Yeats was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1865. He was educated in both Dublin and London, and he wrote his first verse in 1877 (nobelprize.org). He wrote many poems during his lifetime, and is thought to be the most influential poet of his era. He was very influential in the Modernism era. William Butler Yeats was one of the most famous poets from the nineteenth century. Even though William Butler Yeats wrote both Victorian and Modernistic literature, he still had a large impact on the modernistic style. “After 1910, Yeats's dramatic art took a sharp turn toward a highly poetical, static, and esoteric style” (nobelprize.org). Even though Yeats was considered a patriot, “he deplored the hatred and bigotry of the Nationalist movement” This concern was new in the Modernism era. William was awarded the Nobel Prize for his artistic writing. “His significance today rests on his lyric achievement. His poetry, especially the volumes The Wild Swans at Coole (1919), Michael Robartes and the Dancer (1921), The Tower (1928), The Winding Stair and Other Poems (1933), and Last Poems and Plays (1940), made him one of the outstanding and most influential twentieth-century poets writing in English”.(nobelprize.org) An Irish Foresees his Airmen is a short poem that was written to commemorate Robert Gregory, the son of Yeats Patron, Lady (Poetry for students). This poem was first published in the collection of The Wild Swans at Coole. Yeats wrote two other poems about Robert Gregory, which are also included in The Wild Swans at Coole. The poem an Irish Airmen Foresees his Death is a poem written in the modernistic style, and displays it ...

... middle of paper ...

...n though William Butler Yeats had a great impact on Modernism, especially during his time, he still wrote in the Victorian style. Therefore, William Butler Yeats was a great poet, who greatly influenced the style of writing during his time, and the Modernistic style of writing after him.

Works Cited

“Modernism” – literature periods & Movements N.P, N.D. web. 1 Feb 2014.

Literature.com/periods/Modernism.php

“Modernism” Merriam Webster’s encyclopedia of literature. Springfield, MA:

Merriam- Webster 1995. Literature Resource center. Web. 3 Feb. 2014.

“Overview: An Irish Airman Foresees His Airmen.” Poetry for students. Ed. Marie Rose

Napierowski and Mary Ruby. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Literature Resource center. Web. 9 Feb 2014

Yeats, W. B. The Wild Swans at Coole. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1919; Bartleby.com, 1999.