Thesis (M.A.)--Central Connecticut State University, 2000. / Thesis advisor: Richard Bonaccorso. " ... in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in English." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 71-74).

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Detroit, 1959. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [78]-81).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1967. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 239-243).

Uma das mais influentes figuras da literatura irlandesa, o escritor W. B. Yeats conta com uma vasta obra em diversos gêneros (poesia, prosa ficcional, ensaios, teatro, autobiografias) e que se estende por uma longa carreira, do final dos anos 1880 até sua morte, em 1939. Durante todos esses anos de intensa atividade, Yeats acumulou uma profícua correspondência, da qual quase oito mil cartas sobrevivem. Parte de um esforço de décadas, vêm sendo publicados volumes das Collected Letters of W. B. Yeats, um projeto de edição crítica completa da correspondência ativa do autor sob edição-geral de John Kelly para a Oxford University Press. Partindo de uma análise do histórico de publicação das cartas do escritor até o presente momento da edição de John Kelly, esta tese contextualiza as diferentes formas como o rico material das cartas foi utilizado pela crítica do autor e propõe uma exploração das epístolas que Yeats envia a periódicos de língua inglesa para publicação nas seções de Cartas ao Editor, ao final do século XIX. O recorte proposto e a abordagem adotada baseiam-se em um entendimento da correspondência de escritores como um campo de estudo distinto, regido por preocupações que remetem a características específicas do gênero carta. Ancorando-se em diversos outros estudos sobre a escrita epistolar, sejam eles de cunho mais teórico (como DIAZ, 2002), sejam aplicados a escritores específicos (como STANLEY, 2011), a presente pesquisa explora a correspondência aberta do jovem Yeats para ressaltar os usos políticos que ele faz desse tipo de texto. Considerando-se diferentes temas e controvérsias nas quais ele se envolve, partese de uma contextualização do conteúdo referencial das cartas para uma análise das formas como o escritor busca engajar-se com o leitor com o intuito de convencêlo. O estudo revelou que o período escolhido é rico em material sobre a relação entre a literatura e a construção da identidade seja a identidade pessoal e artística do próprio poeta, que busca definir-se em relação à tradição, seja a identidade de toda uma literatura nacional. Para o poeta, definir o cânone nacional irlandês era uma condição essencial para a independência política, uma antiga reinvidicação de parcelas do povo irlandês e que volta a ter grande relevância com os movimentos nacionalistas dos séculos XIX e XX. A análise das estratégias utilizadas por Yeats nas cartas abertas revela uma crescente sofisticação de técnicas e no uso das potencialidades dialógicas e performativas da escrita epistolar e demonstra, concomitantemente, seu amadurecimento como escritor. / One of the most influential figures in Irish literature, the writer W. B. Yeats has produced a vast oeuvre spanning many genres (poetry, prose fiction, essays, theater, autobiographies) and extending over a long career, from the late 1880s until his death in 1939. During all these years of intense activity, Yeats accumulated a fruitful correspondence, of which nearly eight thousand letters survive. Part of an effort of decades that have been published as The Collected Letters of W. B. Yeats, an ongoing critical edition of the authors correspondence under the general editorship of John Kelly for the Oxford University Press. From an analysis of the history of publication of the writers correspondence until John Kellys edition, this thesis contextualizes the different ways in which this rich material has been used by Yeats criticism and proposes an exploration of the letters Yeats sends to periodicals for publication in the Letters to the Editor section during the end of the nineteenth century. The proposed focus and approach are based on an understanding of the writers correspondence as a distinct field of study, governed by concerns that refer back to the specific characteristics of the letter genre. Anchored by several other studies on epistolary writing, both from a more theoretical nature (as DIAZ, 2002) or applied to specific writers (as STANLEY, 2011), this research explores the open correspondence of the young Yeats to highlight the political uses of this kind of text. Considering different issues and controversies in which he engages, the study includes a contextualization of the content of the letters and an analysis of the ways in which the writer seeks to engage with readers in order to convince them. The research found that the chosen period is rich in material dealing with the relationship between literature and the construction of identity be it the personal and artistic identity of the poet, who tries to define himself in relation to tradition, or the identity of a national literature. For the poet, defining Irish national canon was an essential condition for political independence a centuries-long aspiration of the Irish people that once again achieves great relevance among the nationalist movements in the nineteenth and twentieth century. The analysis of the strategies used by Yeats in open letters reveals a growing sophistication in terms of the techniques and his use of the dialogical and performative potentials of the epistolary writing, concomitantly revealing how he matures as a writer.

Uma das mais influentes figuras da literatura irlandesa, o escritor W. B. Yeats conta com uma vasta obra em diversos gêneros (poesia, prosa ficcional, ensaios, teatro, autobiografias) e que se estende por uma longa carreira, do final dos anos 1880 até sua morte, em 1939. Durante todos esses anos de intensa atividade, Yeats acumulou uma profícua correspondência, da qual quase oito mil cartas sobrevivem. Parte de um esforço de décadas, vêm sendo publicados volumes das Collected Letters of W. B. Yeats, um projeto de edição crítica completa da correspondência ativa do autor sob edição-geral de John Kelly para a Oxford University Press. Partindo de uma análise do histórico de publicação das cartas do escritor até o presente momento da edição de John Kelly, esta tese contextualiza as diferentes formas como o rico material das cartas foi utilizado pela crítica do autor e propõe uma exploração das epístolas que Yeats envia a periódicos de língua inglesa para publicação nas seções de Cartas ao Editor, ao final do século XIX. O recorte proposto e a abordagem adotada baseiam-se em um entendimento da correspondência de escritores como um campo de estudo distinto, regido por preocupações que remetem a características específicas do gênero carta. Ancorando-se em diversos outros estudos sobre a escrita epistolar, sejam eles de cunho mais teórico (como DIAZ, 2002), sejam aplicados a escritores específicos (como STANLEY, 2011), a presente pesquisa explora a correspondência aberta do jovem Yeats para ressaltar os usos políticos que ele faz desse tipo de texto. Considerando-se diferentes temas e controvérsias nas quais ele se envolve, partese de uma contextualização do conteúdo referencial das cartas para uma análise das formas como o escritor busca engajar-se com o leitor com o intuito de convencêlo. O estudo revelou que o período escolhido é rico em material sobre a relação entre a literatura e a construção da identidade seja a identidade pessoal e artística do próprio poeta, que busca definir-se em relação à tradição, seja a identidade de toda uma literatura nacional. Para o poeta, definir o cânone nacional irlandês era uma condição essencial para a independência política, uma antiga reinvidicação de parcelas do povo irlandês e que volta a ter grande relevância com os movimentos nacionalistas dos séculos XIX e XX. A análise das estratégias utilizadas por Yeats nas cartas abertas revela uma crescente sofisticação de técnicas e no uso das potencialidades dialógicas e performativas da escrita epistolar e demonstra, concomitantemente, seu amadurecimento como escritor. / One of the most influential figures in Irish literature, the writer W. B. Yeats has produced a vast oeuvre spanning many genres (poetry, prose fiction, essays, theater, autobiographies) and extending over a long career, from the late 1880s until his death in 1939. During all these years of intense activity, Yeats accumulated a fruitful correspondence, of which nearly eight thousand letters survive. Part of an effort of decades that have been published as The Collected Letters of W. B. Yeats, an ongoing critical edition of the authors correspondence under the general editorship of John Kelly for the Oxford University Press. From an analysis of the history of publication of the writers correspondence until John Kellys edition, this thesis contextualizes the different ways in which this rich material has been used by Yeats criticism and proposes an exploration of the letters Yeats sends to periodicals for publication in the Letters to the Editor section during the end of the nineteenth century. The proposed focus and approach are based on an understanding of the writers correspondence as a distinct field of study, governed by concerns that refer back to the specific characteristics of the letter genre. Anchored by several other studies on epistolary writing, both from a more theoretical nature (as DIAZ, 2002) or applied to specific writers (as STANLEY, 2011), this research explores the open correspondence of the young Yeats to highlight the political uses of this kind of text. Considering different issues and controversies in which he engages, the study includes a contextualization of the content of the letters and an analysis of the ways in which the writer seeks to engage with readers in order to convince them. The research found that the chosen period is rich in material dealing with the relationship between literature and the construction of identity be it the personal and artistic identity of the poet, who tries to define himself in relation to tradition, or the identity of a national literature. For the poet, defining Irish national canon was an essential condition for political independence a centuries-long aspiration of the Irish people that once again achieves great relevance among the nationalist movements in the nineteenth and twentieth century. The analysis of the strategies used by Yeats in open letters reveals a growing sophistication in terms of the techniques and his use of the dialogical and performative potentials of the epistolary writing, concomitantly revealing how he matures as a writer.

Depuis les débuts de W. B. Yeats en tant que dramaturge dans les années 1890, le personnage de théâtre irlandais semble pris dans une tempête de mémoire, chavirant entre deux écueils également mortifères, l’impossibilité d’oublier (hypermnésie) et celle de se souvenir (amnésie). Cette crise de la mémoire et par conséquent de l’identité entraîne une prolifération de troubles mentaux chez les personnages et une utilisation métaphorique croissante et peut-être inconsciente de la maladie mentale par les dramaturges comme théâtralisation des bouleversements de la société contemporaine. W. B. Yeats (1865-1939) et J. M. Synge (1871-1909) font de la mémoire dysfonctionnelle non seulement l’un des thèmes centraux de leur œuvre théâtrale, mais plus encore la matière même de leur écriture, alors que la mémoire désacralisée et déstabilisée est réécrite, remodelée par une prolifération de récits mensongers et contradictoires (paramnésie). Ce travail veut alors définir le rapport entre mémoire, maladie mentale et Modernisme sur une période relativement longue (1892-1939) afin d’observer l’évolution des modes d’inscription de la mémoire à l’intérieur du texte en se centrant sur les trois troubles de la mémoire identifiés à l’époque et à la lumière desquels seront étudiées successivement les pièces. Il s’agit de faire un aller-retour entre la perception intuitive de la mémoire par la littérature et les théories psychiatriques contemporaines, l’hypothèse centrale étant que le texte théâtral intègre certaines notions cliniques dans l’étude de la mémoire, ce qui permettrait de voir dans cette relation entre texte médical et texte théâtral l’un des éléments d’un (pré-)Modernisme irlandais. / Ever since Yeats started writing plays in the 1890s, the Irish character seems to be struggling between two opposite pitfalls of memory: on the one hand an impossibility for him to forget, and the other hand an impossibility to retain memories. This memory crisis, which entails an identity crisis, leads to an increasing staging of mental disorders by the playwrights to represent, perhaps involuntarily, a destabilised contemporary society. W. B. Yeats (1865-1939) and J. M. Synge (1871-1909) use mental disorder not only as a theme, but also as a literary ploy as memories in their plays are relived and reconstructed in misleading and contradictory tales. This work focuses on the relationship between memory, mental disorder and Modernism in a long period (1892-1939) in order to underline the evolutions of the representation of dysfunctional memory in the texts. It successively examines the plays in the light of the three major memory disorders identified by psychiatrists at the time: amnesia, hypermnesia and paramnesia. This work relies on a parallel reading of the intuitive perception of memory by literature and the contemporary psychiatric theories, the underlying hypothesis being that some clinical notions of memory dysfunctions have been integrated to the theatrical corpus, which could be a feature of an Irish (early) Modernism.

Disturbance has been recognised as a presence in Yeats’s poetry for some time, although its discussion has not been extensive. The purpose of this thesis is to explore a particular type of disturbance in Yeat’s poetry that has not yet been investigated: disruption, and its relation to the Bible. I argue that disruption, in its meanings of interruption, disorder, fracturing, and division, is a distinct presence in a number of Yeat’s poems, and that it manifests in three key categories: disruption relating to Yeatsian poiesis, Yeat’s interest in and use of instances of disruption in the Bible, and disruption of the Bible itself. / I begin by considering “The Second Coming” as a notable instance of disruption and its religious and biblical resonances. I argue that this work, in reference to an instance of disruption in the Bible, undergoes textual disruption close to its centre. I develop an account of the poem as divided into opposing texts, identities, and prophetic currents, all in close relation to the Bible. I then turn to a range of contextual matters raised by the discussion of “The Second Coming”. Starting with a consideration of religion and the Bible in Yeat’s artistic vision, I argue that these two factors are important to Yeat’s envisioning of art and that disruption is deeply involved with both. Following this I investigate the relation between disruption and the Bible itself, demonstrating that disruption is a strong presence in the biblical narrative. I then consider Yeat’s reception of the Bible, focusing on Yeat’s perception of the Authorised Version and on Blake as a precursor. I argue that the Authorised Version was significant for Yeats, and that Blake was influential in demonstrating the poetic possibilities of biblically-related disruption for Yeats. / After discussing these contextual matters I embark upon a wider survey of biblically-related disruption in Yeat’s poetry. First, I consider a group of poems from one of Yeat’s earlier poetic books, The Wind Among the Reeds. I argue that these works, through the figure of the biblical wind, explore the conjunction of disruption and the Bible in each of the three categories of disruption outlined above. I then turn to a second set of poems that I group together due to a shared theme of inspiration. I argue that these works also engage with disruption and the Bible, particularly in relation to the category of disruption relating to the act of poiesis. The last group of poems that I consider are concerned with central events in the life of Christ. I argue that these works demonstrate a dynamic exploration of disruption and the Bible in relation to these events, focusing particularly on the nature of Christ as God and Saviour. I then proceed to a consideration of disruption in Yeats apart from its expression in the poetry. Seeking to gain a deeper insight into disruption as an element of Yeatsian poiesis, I consider some relevant theoretical perspectives before suggesting that disruption in Yeats can be constructively interpreted in terms of potentiality.

Abstract available in pdf file.

Disturbance has been recognised as a presence in Yeats’s poetry for some time, although its discussion has not been extensive. The purpose of this thesis is to explore a particular type of disturbance in Yeat’s poetry that has not yet been investigated: disruption, and its relation to the Bible. I argue that disruption, in its meanings of interruption, disorder, fracturing, and division, is a distinct presence in a number of Yeat’s poems, and that it manifests in three key categories: disruption relating to Yeatsian poiesis, Yeat’s interest in and use of instances of disruption in the Bible, and disruption of the Bible itself. / I begin by considering “The Second Coming” as a notable instance of disruption and its religious and biblical resonances. I argue that this work, in reference to an instance of disruption in the Bible, undergoes textual disruption close to its centre. I develop an account of the poem as divided into opposing texts, identities, and prophetic currents, all in close relation to the Bible. I then turn to a range of contextual matters raised by the discussion of “The Second Coming”. Starting with a consideration of religion and the Bible in Yeat’s artistic vision, I argue that these two factors are important to Yeat’s envisioning of art and that disruption is deeply involved with both. Following this I investigate the relation between disruption and the Bible itself, demonstrating that disruption is a strong presence in the biblical narrative. I then consider Yeat’s reception of the Bible, focusing on Yeat’s perception of the Authorised Version and on Blake as a precursor. I argue that the Authorised Version was significant for Yeats, and that Blake was influential in demonstrating the poetic possibilities of biblically-related disruption for Yeats. / After discussing these contextual matters I embark upon a wider survey of biblically-related disruption in Yeat’s poetry. First, I consider a group of poems from one of Yeat’s earlier poetic books, The Wind Among the Reeds. I argue that these works, through the figure of the biblical wind, explore the conjunction of disruption and the Bible in each of the three categories of disruption outlined above. I then turn to a second set of poems that I group together due to a shared theme of inspiration. I argue that these works also engage with disruption and the Bible, particularly in relation to the category of disruption relating to the act of poiesis. The last group of poems that I consider are concerned with central events in the life of Christ. I argue that these works demonstrate a dynamic exploration of disruption and the Bible in relation to these events, focusing particularly on the nature of Christ as God and Saviour. I then proceed to a consideration of disruption in Yeats apart from its expression in the poetry. Seeking to gain a deeper insight into disruption as an element of Yeatsian poiesis, I consider some relevant theoretical perspectives before suggesting that disruption in Yeats can be constructively interpreted in terms of potentiality.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Alabama at Birmingham, 2009. / Additional advisors: Sue Kim, Christopher Metress, Kieran Quinlan. Description based on contents viewed June 4, 2009; title from PDF t.p. Includes bibliographical references (p. 87-91).