Yeats had an interesting background, like most of the writers we have read about. He had an unhappy childhood filled with "pain," (1114). His father must have been a perfectionist, because the book said he "lingered over portraits for months" (1114) changing small details. One could guess that since his first love did not return his affection, Yeats became an excellent author of "unrequited love," (1115). After reading this, I was curious as to whether or not any poems of that subject matter were presented to us in this book.
The first writing that grabbed my attention was "No Second Troy." The speaker begins by stating he should not be mad at her because he has fallen for her. It is clear that he is upset that this mysterious woman did not desire him, yet he looked at her as if she were a goddess. She viewed her as having a rare form of beauty, like a "tightened bow," (1118) which I found to be quite a unique way to describe it!
I also enjoyed "The Wild Swans at Coole." This work did an excellent job painting the scene for the reader. I have a graphic imagination, but even so, the way Yeats described the scenary made me feel as if I was right there, watching the swans in the "October twilight" underneath the "still sky," (1118). The speaker stands watching them, and, in a way, seems to fall in love with their beauty. He writes, "I have looked upon those brilliant creatures And now my heart is sore," (1119). He says that he is changed having seen them for the "first time on this shore," (1119). I thought the work was about love, in a more subtle tone. I felt that is was about someone watching a beautiful creature from a distance, wanting to get closer, but before he could, it flew away. At the end of the poem, he writes, "To find they have flown away?" (1119). Knowing his history of unrequited love, he seems to have made this story about swans tell his story about a woman who flew away before he was able to get closer to her.
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2 comments:
Caitlin,
Good comments on excerpts from Yeats. I think your post would have been better, though, if you had only concentrated on a single poem, and taken your discussion farther.
I love the reference you made to him being the poet of unrequitted love, because it is so true. All of his poems have an extreme sense of bittersweetness to them. One of my favorite poems of his, "Down by the Salley Gardens" (which is not in the Longman) is one of my favorite poems. The language is so beautiful and the speaker is obviously so in love with his beloved, but in the end of the poem, readers discover she has died before they could be together. It is such a beautiful piece, but it is also so heart-wrenching, like most of his poetry.
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