Discuss W.B Yeats’ Treatment of Myth and History
The Lake Isle of Innisfree is a notable literary work by William Butler Yeats. A complete discussion of this literary work is given, which will help you enhance your literary skills and prepare for the exam. Read the Main texts, Key info, Summary, Themes, Characters, Literary devices, Quotations, Notes, and various study materials of The Lake Isle of Innisfree.
Answer
Discuss W.B Yeats’ Treatment of Myth and History.
Or, Critically comment on Yeats’ handling of history and myth with reference to the poems you have read.
Discuss elaborately the use of myth and history in the poems of W. B. Yeats that you have read.
W. B. Yeats (1865–1939) was a great Irish poet. He masterfully blends myth (old stories, legends, and symbols) and history in his poetry. By doing this, he makes his poems deeper and more meaningful. Yeats used myths and history to explain the world around him and to talk about the problems people were facing in his time.
Here we will look at his famous poems to see how he combines myth and history.
Sailing to Byzantium: In this poem, Yeats writes about the historical city of Byzantium, which is present-day Istanbul. Byzantium was known for its great art and religion. Here, Yeats mixes real history with imagination to deal with the themes of aging, art, and spirituality. He wants to leave his old, tired body behind and go to this special place where he can live forever through art and wisdom. He says,
“And therefore I have sailed the seas and come
To the holy city of Byzantium.”
Yeats uses the real history of Byzantium and turns it into a dream world, where his soul can be eternal like the artworks. He wants to be free from pain and death and become part of something beautiful and everlasting.
The Second Coming: This is a very famous poem where Yeats mixes a Christian myth with the real problems of the world. He wrote this poem after World War I. It was a time when people were feeling lost, scared, and confused. In the Christian religion, the “Second Coming” means the return of Jesus Christ to save the world. But Yeats changes this idea to present a world which is full of chaos. Instead of Jesus, he shows the wake of a terrible beast.
“And what rough beast,
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