Yeats, W.B.
Yeats, W.B. ( William Butler) (1865–1939) Irish poet and dramatist, often cited as the greatest English language poet of the 20th century. In 1904, he and Lady Gregory founded the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, as an Irish national theatre. Yeats' plays On Baile's Strand (1905) and Cathleen Ni Houlihan (1902) were on the first bill, the latter often regarded as the beginning of the renaissance in Irish literature. His early poetry, collected in The Wanderings of Oisin, and Other Poems (1889), shows the influence of mysticism. Yeats' unrequited love for Maud Gonne inspired him into more directly nationalist statements. The poetry in Responsibilities (1914) acted as contemporary social commentary. Following the creation of the Irish Free State, he served (1922–28) as a senator. Yeats' mature, symbolist poetry, such as A Vision (1925), often adopted dramatic voices. Works from this second phase include Michael Robartes and the Dancer (1921, which contains “The Second Coming” and “Easter 1916”) and The Tower (1928, which contains “Sailing to Byzantium”). Yeats received the 1923 Nobel Prize in literature.
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Yeats, W.B.
