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One of Ireland's finest writers, William Butler Yeats served a long apprenticeship in the arts before his genius was fully developed. He did some of his greatest work after he was fifty. Yeats was born in Dublin, Ireland, on June 13, 1865. His father was a lawyer-turned-Irish painter. In 1867 the family followed him to London and settled in Bedford Park. In 1881 they returned to Dublin, where Yeats studied the Metropolitan School of Art.
Yeats spent much time with his grandparents in County Sligo in northwestern Ireland. The scenery and folklore of this region greatly influenced Yeats' work. For a while he studied art, but during the 1890 s he became active in London's literary life and helped found the Rhymers' Club. Yeats' early work was not especially Irish. Soon, however, he began to look to the ancient rituals and pagan beliefs of the land for his artistic inspiration. He tried to merge this interest with his aristocratic tastes to create an original Irish poetry and to establish his own identity.
In 1896 Yeats met Lady Gregory, an aristocrat and playwright who shared his interest in Ireland's past, especially in its folklore. In 1899 they formed a literary society that was the predecessor of the Abbey Theatre. Among his plays were 'The Countess Cathleen' (1892) and 'Cathleen ni Houlihan' (1902), with Maud Gonne in the title role. In 1899 he proposed to her, but she refused to marry him.
As a means of getting closer to Maud, Yeats later proposed to her daughter, who also refused. Yeats met Ezra Pound in 1912, and Pound became his fencing master and secretary during the winters of 1913 and 1914, and was a friend and confidante for the remainder of this life. The suggestive, beautiful lyricism of Yeats' early career (including such works as the famous 'Sailing to Byzantium') changed to the tune of spare and tragic bitterness as Ireland faced certain war in the early 1910 s. This was apparent in Yeats poem 'September 1913 ' in which he stated: "Romantic Ireland's dead and gone. " During the civil war Irish Free State soldiers burned many of Yeats' letters to Maud Gonne when they raided her house. At the start of the war Yeats went to Oxford, but then returned to Dublin, becoming a Senator in the same year.
A free Ireland was Maud Gonne's passion, and Yeats' love for her sparked his interest in the country's political struggles. From 1922 until 1928 he was a senator in the Dail Eireann, or Irish parliament. As a politician Yeats defended Protestant interests and took pro-Treaty stance against Republicans. Yeats was passionate about reforming Ireland, but frustrated at what seemed to be endless struggle. After his stint as a senator, Yeats devoted himself to literature and drama, believing that poems and plays would create a national unity capable of transforming the country. In 1916 he published what may be his most famous work, 'Easter 1916 ' about the Irish nationalist uprising.
It referred to the executed leaders of the uprising and stated: "Now and in time to be, / Wherever the green is worn, / All changed, changed utterly: / A terrible beauty is born. " In Yeats' work for the Abbey, which opened in 1904, he persuaded John Millington Synge to return to Irish folklore for subject material, and Synge wrote some of the finest Irish plays ever produced. Yeats, Synge, and Lady Gregory were among the leaders of the Irish literary revival. In 1923 Yeats was awarded the Nobel prize for literature. Occultism played a significant role in Yeats' life. He was a member of the Theosophical Society and was impressed with the works of Emanuel Swedenborg, William Blake, Stephane Mallarme, and Charles Baudelaire. In 1917 he married Georgie Hyde-Lees, who was thought to be a medium.
It was known by both parties that the love of Yeats' life was still Maud Gonne. In 1932 Yeats founded the Irish Academy of Letters and in 1933 he was briefly involved with the fascist 'Blueshirts' in Dublin. As time passed, Yeats' poetry became more polished and profound. 'The Tower' and 'The Winding Stair' were his last great poetic works. In his last years he lived on the Irish coast in an old tower that served as a symbol in much of his later poetry. In a prose style poem called 'A Vision', Yeats set forth his theories of history and of human personality. Always controversial, Yeats caused much discussion with his edition of 'The Oxford Book of Modern Verse', published in 1936.
Some critics thought the selections in the anthology were too individualized, reflecting only Yeats' own interests and attitudes. While vacationing in Mallorca, Yeats became seriously ill. Yeats died on Jan. 28, 1939, in Roquebrune, France. His body remained buried there throughout World War II, but in 1948 it was brought back to Ireland for burial in County Sligo.
In a poem composed in his memory, W. H. Auden wrote, "Earth, receive an honored guest; William Yeats is laid to rest. "
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