The Collected Poems of W. B. Yeats
(Richard J. Finneran (Editor), William Butler Yeats
)
The Collected Poems of W. B. Yeats includes all of the poems authorized by Yeats for inclusion in his standard canon. Breathtaking in range, it encompasses the entire arc of his career, from luminous reworkings of ancient Irish myths and legends to passionate meditations on the demands and rewards of youth and old age, from exquisite, occasionally whimsical songs of love, nature, and art to somber and angry poems of life in a nation torn by war and uprising. In observing the development of rich and recurring images and themes over the course of his body of work, we can trace the quest of this century's greatest poet to unite intellect and artistry in a single magnificent vision.
W.B. Yeats a Life : The Apprentice Mage 1865-1914 (Vol 1)
(R. F. Foster)
To understand William Butler Yeats, one must first understand the times in which he lived. Yeats was a rare commodity in the Ireland of the late 19th and early 20th centuries: a Protestant Irish nationalist. At a time of incredible political turmoil, Yeats belonged to a school of English literature known as the Celtic Twilight--a term he coined himself--that sought to marry contemporary thought with traditional Irish culture and beliefs. Even as Ireland struggled with issues of national identity, Yeats confronted the difficult problem of defining his literary identity as an Irish writer within a greater English tradition. Biographer R. F. Foster untangles the complexities of both Yeats's life and the political and social situation that surrounded him in the first of two volumes, W. B. Yeats: A Life.
This first volume covers the years 1865 through 1914, a time during which Yeats met his great love and the subject of some of his finest poems, Maude Gonne. This is also the period in which the poet, along with Lady Gregory and John Millington Synge (author of the then-controversial masterpiece, Playboy of the Western World), created the famous Abbey Theater and wrote some of his finest poems. Foster brings passion, knowledge, and insight to a difficult, fascinating subject. Let us hope that volume two is not far behind.
Yeats : The Man and the Masks
(Richard Ellmann)
The definitive biography of William Butler Yeats. The most influential poet of his age, Yeats eluded the grasp of many who sought to explain him. In this classic critical examination of the poet, Richard Ellmann strips away the masks of his subject: occultist, senator of the Irish Free State, libidinous old man, and Nobel Prize winner.
Yeats's Poetry, Drama, and Prose : Authorative Texts, Contexts, Criticism
(James Pethica (Editor), William Butler Yeats, ja Pethica)
(Norton Critical Editions) No other series of classic texts achieves the editorial standard of the Norton Critical Editions. Each volume combines the most authoritative text available with contextual and critical materials that bring the work to life for students. Careful editing, first-rate translation, thorough explanatory annotations, chronologies, and selected bibliographies make each text accessible to students while encouraging in-depth study.
