Yeats, Coleridge and the Romantic Sage

237 Pages·2000·1.42 MB·English

by  Matthew Gibson

Yeats, Coleridge and the
Romantic Sage
Matthew Gibson
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Yeats, Coleridge and the
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Matthew Gibson
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10.1057/9780230286498 - Yeats, Coleridge and the Romantic Sage, Matthew Gibson
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First published in Great Britain 2000 by
MACMILLAN PRESS LTD
Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and London
Companies and representatives throughout the world
Acatalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 0–333–74625–2
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First published in the United States of America 2000 by 1-
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ST. MARTIN’S PRESS, INC., 20
Scholarly and Reference Division, ct -
e
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010 n
n
o
ISBN 0–312–23022–2 eC
v
a
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data gr
Gibson, Matthew, 1967– Pal
Yeats, Coleridge, and the romantic sage / Matthew Gibson. o -
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p. cm. m
o
Includes bibliographical references and index. Tr
ISBN 0–312–23022–2 (cloth) et i
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1. Yeats, W. B. (William Butler), 1865–1939—Knowledge—Literature. 2. Yeats, ote
W. B. (William Butler), 1865–1939—Philosophy. 3. Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, bli
1772–1834—Philosophy. 4. Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, 1772–1834—Influence. 5. sbi
English poetry—19th century—History and criticism. 6. Romanticism—Great sitet
Britain. 7. Metaphysics in literature. 8. Philosophy in literature. I. Title. er
v
ni
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PR5908.L5 G53 2000 o
821'.8—dc21 d t
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99–046990 ns
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©Matthew Gibson 2000 m - li
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All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made ct.c
without written permission. ne
n
o
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No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written e
v
permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act gra
1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright al
p
Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1P0LP. w.
w
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Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to m
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criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. al fr
The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with ateri
the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. ht m
g
This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained yri
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forest sources. o
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10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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Printed and bound in Great Britain by
Antony Rowe Ltd, Chippenham, Wiltshire
10.1057/9780230286498 - Yeats, Coleridge and the Romantic Sage, Matthew Gibson
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Contents
Acknowledgements vi
8
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List of Abbreviations viii 03-
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A Note on the Text xi ct - 2
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Introduction 1 o
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Part I Personality 9 al
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1 Phantasmagoria: the Personality of Coleridge ms
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in the Earlier Prose of Yeats 11 Tr
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2 ‘Escaped from Isolating Method’: Coleridge as e
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Sage in Yeats’s 1930 Diary 29 bli
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Part II Transcendence and Immanence 55 ersit
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3 Reason and Understanding: Coleridge’s o U
Philosophical Influence on Yeats 57 ed t
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4 ‘PWoeismdso min, tMhea gLiact, eSre Pnosaettiroyn o’:f CYeoaletsridge’s ‘Supernatural’ 86 m - lic
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ct.
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Part III Metaphor 115 nn
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5 ‘Natural Declension of the Soul’: Yeats and the Mirror 117 gra
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6 Towards ‘Berkeley’s Roasting Spit’: Coleridge and w.
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Metaphors of Unity 149 m w
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Conclusion 175 al fr
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Appendix: Yeats’s Coleridge Collection 177 ht
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Notes 184 pyri
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Bibliography 208
Index 216
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Acknowledgements
I should like to extend thanks to the following for the help they
8
have given me in preparing this book: Michael Baron, Carol Peaker, 3-1
0
Svetlana Salowska, Deirdre Toomey and Anne Varty, all of whom, in 11-
0
different ways, have helped with either the collection of material or ct - 2
with the preparation of the manuscript. ne
n
Special thanks are due to the library of State University of New York Co
e
at Stonybrook, and to John Kelly and Roger Nyle Parisious for provid- av
gr
ing me with copies of unpublished material. al
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Especial thanks, however, are due to Peter Lewis, for having read over o -
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earlier drafts of chapters and suggesting changes when I was first o
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preparing this work as a doctoral dissertation, and, of course, to et i
k
Warwick Gould for his substantial effort when supervising that initial ote
thesis and for providing subsequent advice. bibli
s
et
sit
er
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The author and publishers would like to thank the following for per- Uni
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mission to reproduce copyright material: d t
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s
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The extracts from W. B. Yeats, Autobiographies (London: Macmillan, c
1955), Essays and Introductions (London and New York: Macmillan, m - li
o
c
1961), Explorations, selected by Mrs W. B. Yeats (London: Macmillan, ct.
e
1962; New York, Macmillan, 1963), The Variorum Edition of the Poems of nn
o
W. B. Yeats, ed. Peter Allt and Russell K. Alspach (London and New ec
v
a
York: Macmillan, 1966), are reproduced by permission of A. P. Watt gr
al
Ltd, on behalf of Michael B. Yeats. w.p
w
w
The extracts from Yeats’s manuscript ‘Diary, begun at Rapallo’ (1930) om
are reproduced by permission of A. P. Watt Ltd, on behalf of Michael B. al fr
Yeats and Anne Yeats. ateri
m
ht
The extracts from W. B. Yeats and T. Sturge Moore: Their Correspondence, yrig
p
1901–37, ed. Ursula Bridge (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul; New o
C
York: Oxford University Press, 1953), are reproduced by permission of
Routledge.
The extracts from The Letters of W. B. Yeats, ed. Allen Wade (London:
Rupert Hart-Davis, 1954; New York: Macmillan, 1955), together with
vi
10.1057/9780230286498 - Yeats, Coleridge and the Romantic Sage, Matthew Gibson
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Acknowledgements vii
extracts from unpublished letters, are reproduced by permission of
Oxford University Press.
The extracts from A Vision by W. B. Yeats; copyright 1937 by W. B.
Yeats; copyright renewed © 1965 by Bertha Georgie Yeats and Anne
8
Butler Yeats, are reproduced by permission of Simon & Schuster. 1
3-
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1-
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The extracts from Mythologies by W. B. Yeats, copyright © 1959 by Mrs 2
W. B. Yeats, are reproduced by permission of Simon & Schuster. ect -
n
n
o
C
e
The extracts from Autobiographies by W. B. Yeats, copyright 1916, 1936 v
a
by Macmillan Publishing Company, copyrights renewed © 1944, 1964 algr
P
by Bertha Georgie Yeats, are reproduced by permission of Simon & o -
s
Schuster. m
o
Tr
et i
The extracts from Explorationsby W. B. Yeats, copyright © 1962 by Mrs ek
ot
W. B. Yeats, are reproduced by permission of Simon & Schuster. bli
bi
s
et
The extracts from Essays and Introductions by W. B. Yeats, copyright © ersit
v
1961 Mrs W. B. Yeats, are reproduced by permission of Simon & Schuster. ni
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d t
The extracts from the poems ‘His Bargain’, ‘The Tower’, ‘An Acre se
n
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o‘Cf ooGlrea sPs’a,r k‘ Tahned SBevalelnyl eSea, g1e9s’3, 1‘’M, ‘eNdiintaettieoenns Hinu nTdirmede aonf d CNiviinl etWeeanr’’,, m - lic
o
c
‘Byzantium’, ‘Vacillation’, ‘To Dorothy Wellesley’, ‘Supernatural Songs’, ct.
e
‘The Phases of the Moon’ and ‘Long-legged Fly’ are reproduced by per- nn
o
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mission of Simon & Schuster from The Variorum Edition of the Poems of e
v
a
W. B. Yeats, ed. Peter Allt and Russell K. Alspach; copyright 1928 by gr
al
Macmillan Publishing Company; copyrights renewed © 1956 by w.p
w
Georgie Yeats; copyright 1933, 1934 by Macmillan Publishing w
m
Ccoopmyrpiagnhyt ;1 c9o4p0y briyg hGte roerngieew Yeeda t©s; 1co9p61y,r ig1h96t 2re bnye wBeedrt ©ha 1 G96e8o rbgyia BYeerathtsa; erial fro
Georgie Yeats, Michael Butler Yeats, and Anne Yeats. mat
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The extracts from The Variorum Edition of the Plays of W. B. Yeats, ed. pyri
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Russell K. Alspach, copyright © 1966 by Russell K. Alspach, are repro- C
duced by permission of Simon & Schuster.
Every effort has been made to trace all the copyright holders, but if any
have been inadvertently overlooked the publishers will be pleased to
make the necessary arrangement at the first opportunity.
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viii List of Abbreviations
List of Abbreviations
The standard works by W. B. Yeats and S. T. Coleridge listed below are
8
cited in the text by standard abbreviations, including volume number 3-1
0
where appropriate, and page number. Works listed here are not 11-
0
included in the Bibliography at the end of the book. ct - 2
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Yeats av
gr
al
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Au Autobiographies(London: Macmillan, 1955). o -
s
m
AV B A Vision(London: Macmillan, 1962). o
Tr
CM W. B. Yeats: A Census of the Manuscripts, by Conrad A. et i
k
Balliet with the assistance of Christine Mawhinney ote
(New York and London: Garland Publishing, 1990). bibli
s
Col. L1,3 The Collected Letters of W. B. Yeats, vol. 1: 1865–1895, ed. et
sit
John Kelly and Eric Domville; vol. 3: 1901–4, ed. John er
v
Kelly and Ronald Schuchard (Oxford: Clarendon Press, Uni
o
1986, 1994). d t
e
CV A A Critical Edition of Yeats’s A Vision (1925), ed. George ns
e
c
Mills Harper and Walter Kelly Hood (London: m - li
Macmillan, 1978). o
c
E&I Essays and Introductions (London and New York: ct.
e
n
Macmillan, 1961). on
c
Ex Explorations, sel. Mrs W. B. Yeats (London: Macmillan, ve
a
1962; New York: Macmillan, 1963). algr
p
L The Letters of W. B. Yeats, ed. Allan Wade (London: w.
w
Rupert Hart-Davis, 1954; New York: Macmillan, 1955). m w
o
LTSM W. B. Yeats and T. Sturge Moore: Their Correspondence, al fr
1901–1937, ed. Ursula Bridge (London: Routledge & eri
at
Kegan Paul; New York: Oxford University Press, 1953). m
ht
Mem Memoirs: Autobiography – First Draft, journal transcribed g
yri
and edited by Denis Donoghue (London: Macmillan, p
o
C
1972; New York: Macmillan, 1973).
Myth Mythologies(London and New York: Macmillan, 1959).
MYV1,2 The Making of Yeats’s ‘A Vision’: A Study of the Automatic
Script, by George Mills Harper, 2 vols (London:
Macmillan, 1987).
viii
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List of Abbreviations ix
NC A New Commentary on the Poems of W. B. Yeats, by
A. Norman Jeffares (London: Macmillan, 1984).
NLI MS Manuscript, National Library of Ireland (to be followed
by number).
OBMV The Oxford Book of Modern Verse, 1895–1935, chosen by
8
W. B. Yeats (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1936). 1
3-
0
UPAN The Ten Principal Upanishads, trans. Shree Purohit Swa¯mi 1-
1
0
and W. B. Yeats (London and Boston: Faber & Faber, 2
1937). ect -
n
UP1 Uncollected Prose by W. B. Yeats, vol. 1, ed. John P. Frayne on
C
e
(London: Macmillan; New York: Columbia University v
a
Press, 1970). algr
P
UP2 Uncollected Prose by W. B. Yeats, vol. 2, ed. John P. Frayne o -
s
and Colton Johnson (London: Macmillan, 1975; New m
o
Tr
York: Columbia University Press, 1976). et i
VP The Variorum Edition of the Poems of W. B. Yeats, ed. Peter ek
ot
Allt and Russell K. Alspach (New York: Macmillan, bli
bi
1957). To be cited from the corrected third printing of ets
1966 or later printings. ersit
v
VPl The Variorum Edition of the Plays of W. B. Yeats, ed. ni
U
Russell K. Alspach assisted by Catherine C. Alspach d to
(London and New York: Macmillan, 1966). To be cited se
n
e
fprroinmt inthgse. corrected second printing of 1966 or later m - lic
o
c
VSR The Secret Rose, Stories by W. B. Yeats: A Variorum Edition, ct.
e
ed. Warwick Gould, Phillip L. Marcus and Michael J. nn
o
c
Sidnell (London: Macmillan, 1992). To be cited from e
v
a
this second edition, revised and enlarged from the 1981 gr
al
Cornell University Press edition. w.p
w
WWB1,2,3 The Works of William Blake, Poetic, Symbolic, and Critical, w
m
eadn.d w ai thm leimthooigr raapnhds ionft ethrper eiltlautsitornat ebdy ‘PErdowpihne tJioch Bno oEkllsi’s, erial fro
and William Butler Yeats, 3 vols (London: Bernard mat
Quaritch, 1893). ht
g
YA Yeats Annual, ed. Warwick Gould (London: Macmillan, pyri
o
1982– ), to be followed by volume number. C
YAACTS Yeats: An Annual of Critical and Textual Studies 4, ed.
Richard J. Finneran (Ann Arbor: UMI Press, 1986), to be
followed by volume number.
YL Edward O’Shea, A Descriptive Catalog of W. B. Yeats’s
Library (New York and London: Garland Publishing,
10.1057/9780230286498 - Yeats, Coleridge and the Romantic Sage, Matthew Gibson