William Butler Yeats began his writing career at the age of 17 with his first poems and an essay titled “The Poetry of Sir Samuel Ferguson” being published by Dublin University Review in 1885. [1]
William Butler Yeats, one of Ireland’s most renowned poets and playwrights, was born on 13 June 1865, in Dublin, Ireland. He was the first of four children born to John Butler Yeats, a talented artist, and his wife, Susan.
Yeats spent his early years in Dublin, but his family’s financial instability led to frequent moves, and he was educated in various locations, including London. His interest in literature and the arts was cultivated from a young age, partly due to his father’s artistic connections and his mother’s interest in folklore and mystical subjects.
Between 1877 and 1881, Yeats attended the Godolphin School in London, where he developed a strong interest in poetry and began writing his own. During this time, he became acquainted with other emerging literary figures, including George Bernard Shaw and Oscar Wilde.
Yeats returned to Dublin in 1883 and immersed himself in the city’s literary and cultural scene. He joined the Dublin-based Rhymers’ Club, a group of poets, and began publishing his poetry in various literary magazines. His early poetry reflected his fascination with Irish folklore, mythology, and the occult, themes that would continue to influence his work throughout his life.
In 1889, Yeats met Maud Gonne, a prominent Irish nationalist and activist, who became a major influence on his personal and poetic life. His unrequited love for her inspired some of his most famous poems. Although he proposed to her several times, she rejected his advances, but they maintained a close friendship.
In the early 1890s, Yeats, along with his friend Lady Augusta Gregory, played a significant role in the Irish Literary Revival, a cultural movement aimed at promoting Irish literature and traditions. He co-founded the Irish Literary Theatre, which later became the Abbey Theatre, an institution central to the development of Irish drama.
Yeats was appointed to the Irish Senate in 1922 and is remembered as an important cultural leader, a major playwright, and considered to be one of the greatest poets of the 20th century. In December 1923 he received the honour of becoming the first Irish Nobel Laureate, having won the prize for Literature, and he died in Menton, France, in January 1939 at the age of 73.