W. B. YEATS

Critical Assessments•

Edited by

David Pierce

VOLUME I

Contemporary Reviews; Select List

of Reviews of Plays in Performance;

1887-1988

HELM INFORMATION

Contents

VOLUME I:Contemporary Reviews; Select List of

Reviews of Plays in Performance;1887-1988

General Editor's Preface 1Introduction 3A Note on the Texts , 25A Chronology of Yeats's Life 26Bibliography: Yeats's Major Works 35Critical Bibliography 45Chronological List of Criticism Included 67List of Topics 89Acknowledgements ' 111

Contemporary Reviews

Mosada (1886)1. K[ATHARINE] T[YNAN], from 'Three Young Poets', The 121

Irish Monthly, March 1887

Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry (1888)2. ANONYMOUS, from 'Notes on New Books', The Irish 123

Monthly, November 18883. OSCAR WILDE, 'Some Literary Notes', Woman's World, 124

February 18894. [ALFRED NUTT] , 'Review of Fairy and Folk Tales of the 128

Irish Peasantry', The Athenceum, 9 February 1889

The Wanderings ofOisin and Other Poems (1889)5. ANONYMOUS, from 'Literature: Some Recent Poetry', 132

The Freeman's fournal, 1 February 1889

CONTENTS

6. [MATTHEW RUSSELL], from 'Notes on New Books',The 134Irish Monthly, February 1889

7. J[OHN] TODHUNTER, Review, The Academy, 30 March 1889. 1358. OSCAR WILDE, from 'Three New Poets', Pall Mall Gazette, 139

12 July 1889

Representative Irish Tales (1891)9. ANONYMOUS, from 'Notes on New Books', The Irish 141

Monthly, July 1891

John Sherman and Dhoya (1891)10. [MATTHEW RUSSELL], 'Notes on New Books', The Irish 143

Monthly, December 189111. ANONYMOUS, from 'New Books and Reprints ' , The 144

Saturday Review, 5 December 189112. ANONYMOUS, from 'Novels of the Week', The Athenamm, 145

26 December 1891

The Countess Kathleen and Various Legends and Lyrics (1892)13. LIONEL JOHNSON, Review, The Academy, 1 October 1892 14614. ANONYMOUS, 'Notes on New Books', The Irish Monthly, 152

October 189215. ANONYMOUS, Review, The Athenceum, 7 January 1893 15416. F. HUGH O'DONNELL, 'Celtic Drama In Dublin', [letter 156

to the editor], The Freeman's Journal, 1 April 1899.

The Celtic Twilight (1893)17 G- Y, 'The Celtic Twilight', The Bookman, February 1894 160

The Land of Heart's Desire (1894)18. G- Y, 'The. Land of Heart's Desire', The Bookman, June 1894 163

Poems (1895)19. A [ N N I E ] M[ACDONELL] , 'Mr Yeats's Poems ' , The 165

Bookman, December 189520. J [OHN] MCG[RATH], 'The Changing of "Oisin"', United 168

Ireland, 14 December 1895

The Secret Rose (1897)21. GEORGE MOORE, 'Mr Yeats's New Book' , The Daily 173

Chronicle, 24 April 189722. ANONYMOUS, 'A Poet's Prose', The Speaker, 8 May 1897 17723. ANONYMOUS, 'Mysteries of the Neo-Celtic Movement', 179

The Dial, 16 April 1898

CONTENTS

The Wind Among the Reeds (1899)24. ANONYMOUS, 'The Muse of Mr Yeats', The Outlook, 29 181

April 189925. ARTHUR SYMONS, 'Mr Yeats As A Lyric Poet', The 183

Saturday Review, 6 May 189926. [FRANCIS THOMPSON], 'Mr Yeats's Poems', The Academy, 187

6 May 189927. [PCHARLES LEWIS HIND] 'Mr W. B. Yeats and The Wind 192

Among the Reeds', The Academy, 20 January 1900

Poems (revised edition 1899)28. ANONYMOUS, 'A Revised Yeats', The Outlook, 22 July 1899 194

A Book of Irish Verse (revised edition 1900)29. [FRANCIS THOMPSON], 'The Irish Literary Movement: 197

Mr Yeats as Shepherd', The Academy, 17 March 1900

The Shadowy Waters (1900-1)30. ANONYMOUS, from 'Poets From Ireland', The Outlook, 12 202

January 190131. ANONYMOUS, 'Mr Yeats's New Play', The Academy, 26 205

January 1901

Poems (revised edition 1901)32. [FRANCIS THOMPSON], 'The Poet As Tinkerer ' , The 208

Academy, 11 May, 1901'

Ideas of Good and Evil (1903)33. ANONYMOUS, 'The Hidden Beauty', The Speaker, 30 May 214

190334. ANONYMOUS, Review, The Athenceum, 27 June 1903 21735. HORATIO SHEAFE KRANS, from William Butler Yeats and 222

the Irish Literary Revival, London, 1905

In the Seven Woods (1903)36. H.W. BOYNTON, from 'Books New and Old', The Atlantic 229

Monthly, January 1904

Plays for an Irish Theatre Vols I, II, and III (1903-4)37. ANONYMOUS, 'Drama', The Athenceum , 21 May 1904 231

Deirdre (1907)38. E[DWARD] T[HOMAS], 'Deirdre', The Bookman, October 235

1907

IX

CONTENTS

Collected Works (1908)39. EDWARD THOMAS, 'Books of the Day: An Irish Poet', 238

The Daily Chronicle, 6 March 190940. EDWARD GARNETT, 'The Work of W. B. Yeats', English 241

Review, April 190941. JAMES HUNEKER, 'A Poet of Visions', The Pathos of Distance: 246

A Book of a Thousand and One Moments, London, 1913

The Green Helmet and Other Poems (1910)42. ANONYMOUS,'Reviews of New Books-The Later Yeats', 251

The Irish Review, April 1911

Plays for an Irish Theatre (1911)43. [HAROLD CHILD], 'Mr Yeats's Plays', The Times Literary 254

Supplement, 28 December 191144. DARRELL FIGGIS, 'The Theatre', The Bookman, March 1912 257

Stories of Red Hanrahan, The Secret Rose, Rosa Alchemica (1914)45. GEORGE TOWNSHEND, Review, The Sewanee Review, April 259

1915

Responsibilities (1914)46. EZRA POUND, 'The Later Yeats', Poetry (Chicago), May 1914 261

Responsibilities And Other Poems (1916)47. E[ZRA] P[OUND], 'Mr Yeats' New Book', Poetry (Chicago), 264

December 191648. C[ATHOIR] O' B[AONAIN], Review of Responsibilities and 266

The Poetical Works of Thomas MacDonagh, Studies, March 1917

Responsibilities And Other Poems (1916);Reveries Over Childhood and Youth (1916)

49. [HAROLD CHILD], 'Mr Yeats in Middle Age', The Times 270Literary Supplement, 19 October 1916

50. [?J. S. CRONE], 'Reveries and Responsibilities', The Irish Book 273Lover, December-January, 1916-17

Reveries Over Childhood and Youth (1916)51. R. H. C. [A. R. ORAGE], from 'Readers and Writers', The 275

New Age, 2 November 191652. AE [GEORGE RUSSELL], 'The Boyhood Of A Poet', New 277

Ireland, 16 December 191653. P. C[OLUM?], 'A Poet's Upbringing', Poetry (Chicago), April 279

1918

CONTENTS

Per Arnica Silentia Lunae (1918)54. [ARTHUR CLUTTON BROCK], Reality By Moonlight', 281

The Times Literary Supplement, 7 February 191855. FRANCIS BICKLEY, 'Anima Poetae', The Bookman, May 285

191856. [T.S. ELIOT], Review, The Egoist, June-July 1918 287

The Wild Swans at Coole (1919)57. [ARTHUR CLUTTON BROCK], 'Tunes Old and New', The 288

Times Literary Supplement, 20 March 191958. KATHARINE TYNAN, 'A Strayed Poet', The Bookman, May 291

1919.

The Cutting of an Agate (1919)59. ANONYMOUS, 'A Lapidary', The Times Literary Supplement, 293

1 May 1919.60. T. S. E[LIOT], 'A Foreign Mind', The Athenceum, 4 July 1919 29761. FRANCIS BICKLEY, 'Mr Yeats's Odyssey', The Bookman, 301

August 1919

Selected Poems (1921)62. PADRAIC COLUM, 'Mr Yeats' Selected Poems', The Dial, 304

October 1922

Four Plays for Dancers (1921)63. ANONYMOUS, from 'Poetic Drama' , The Nation and 309

Athenceum, 11 February 1922,64. PADRAIC COLUM, 'A New Dramatic Art', The Dial, March 311

1922

The Trembling of the Veil (1922)65. A[ODH] DE B[LACAM], 'Memoirs of W. B. Yeats: Genesis 314

of the Celtic Movement Described', The Irish Independent,13 November 1922

66. ANONYMOUS, 'Mr Yeats Explains Himself, The Nation 318and Athenaeum, 30 December 1922

Plays in Prose and Verse (1922); Later Poems (1922)67. [HAROLD CHILD], 'Mr Yeats's Dreams', The Times Literary 322

Supplement, 28 September, 1922

Plays and Controversies (1923-4)68. W. P. RYAN, 'Plays And Controversies', The Bookman, March 327

1924

CONTENTS

Essays (1924)69. GEORGE SAMPSON, from 'Two Ways of Criticism', The 329

Bookman, July 1924

Early Poems and Stories (1925)70. [HUGH I'ANSON FAUSSET], 'Mr Yeats in Transition', The 331

Times Literary Supplement, 8 October 192571. W. P. RYAN, 'The Youth of Mr Yeats', The Bookman, March 334

1926

A Vision (1925)72. AE [GEORGE RUSSELL], 'Literature and Life: A Vision', 337

The Irish Statesman, 13 February 192673. ANONYMOUS, 'The Visionary Yeats', New Statesman, 341

27 March 192674. [BASIL DE SELINCOURT], 'Mr Yeats's Occultism', The 344

Times Literary Supplement, 22 April 1926

Autobiographies (1926)75. RICHARD CHURCH, 'W. B. Yeats And The Creative 346

Mask', Calendar of Modern Letters, January 192776. EDMUND WILSON, 'Yeats's Memoirs', The New Republic, 350

23 February 192777. HAMISH MILES, Review, The Monthly Criterion, June 1927 354

The Tower (1928)78. [AUSTIN CLARKE], 'Mr Yeats's New Poems', The Times 357

Literary Supplement, 1 March 192879. JOHN GOULD FLETCHER, from 'Books of the Quarter', 360

The Criterion, September 1928

Selected Poems (1929)80. SEAN O'FAOLAlN, from 'Books of the Quarter', The 362

Criterion, April 1930

The Winding Stair (1929 New York edition)81. MARIANNE MOORE, 'Words for Music Perhaps', Poetry, 368

April 1933

Words for Music Perhaps and Other Poems (1932)82. MURIEL C. BRADBROOK, 'Songs Of Experience, Scrutiny, 371

June 193383. THEODORE SPENCER, 'William Butler Yeats', The Hound 373

and Horn, October-December 1933

CONTENTS

The Winding Stair and Other Poems (1933)84. F. R. LEAVIS, 'The Latest Yeats', Scrutiny, December 1933 38485. ANONYMOUS, Review, Life and Letters, December 1933 38786. HUGH GORDON PORTEUS, Review, The Criterion, 390

January 193487. PADRAIC FALLON, Review, The Dublin Magazine, April- 393

June 1934

Collected Poems (1933)88. ANONYMOUS, Review, The Listener, 31 January 1934 40189. HERBERT READ, 'Books of the Quarter', The Criterion, 403

April 1934

Letters to the New Island (1934)90. KERKER QUINN, 'Memories Differ', The Yale Review, 407

September 1936

Wheels and Butterflies (1934)91. JOHN GOULD FLETCHER, Review, The Southern Review, 409

Summer 1935

Collected Plays (1934)92. JOHN GARRETT, Review of The Collected Plays of W. B. 413

Yeats and Wheels and Butterflies, The Criterion, April 1935

The King of the Great Clock Tower (1934)93. HOWARD BAKER, from'Wallace Stevens and Other Poets', 417

The Southern Review, Autumn 1935

A Full Moon in March (1935)94. H. T. HUNT GRUBB, 'The New Yeats', Poetry Review, 419

January-February 193695. JANET ADAM SMITH, from 'Books of the Quarter', The 421

Criterion, April 193696. RUTH M. D. WAINEWRIGHT, Review, English, Autumn 423

1936

Dramatis Personae (1936)97. PADRAIC COLUM, 'Yeats Looks Back', The Saturday Review

of Literature, 16 May 1936 , 42598. SHERARD VINES, 'Mr Yeats and the Irish Revival', The

Listener, 1 July 1936 42899. LOUIS MACNEICE, from 'Books of the Quarter', The

Criterion, October 1936 430

CONTENTS

The Oxford Book of Modern Verse, 1892-1935,chosen by W. B.Yeats (1936)

100. F. O. MATTHIESSEN, 'W. B. Yeats and Others ' , The 434Southern Review, Spring 1937

101. FREDERICK T. WOOD, from 'Current Literature 1936', 444English Studies, August 1937

102. ROBERT HILLYER, 'Brief Mention', Modern Language Notes, 446December 1937

A Vision (1937)103. ANONYMOUS, 'Views and Reviews: Yeats' "A Vision"', The 448

New English Weekly, 20 January 1938104. HORACE REYNOLDS, 'W. B. Yeats Expounds his "Heavenly 451

Geometry'", The New York Times Book Review, 13 March 1938105. H. T. H U N T GRUBB, 'A Poet's Dream', The Poetry Review, 454

March-April 1938106. STEPHEN SPENDER, from 'Books of the Quarter', The 469

Criterion, April 1938

New Poems (1938)107. WINFIELD TOWNLEY SCOTT, 'Yeats at 73', Poetry, 471

November 1938

Last Poems and Plays (Macmillan 1940)108. F. R. LEAVIS, 'The Great Yeats, And The Latest', Scrutiny, Alb

March 1940109. MARY M. COLUM, 'Poets and Psychologists', Forum, June 479

1940110. JOHN CROWE RANSOM, 'Old Age of a Poet', The Kenyan 484

Review, Summer 1940111. J. J. H[OGAN], from 'English Literature', Studies, December 487

1940

Letters on Poetry from W. B. Yeats to Dorothy Wellesley (1940)112. ANONYMOUS, Review, The Dublin Magazine, January- 489

March 1941

Florence Farr, Bernard Shaw, W. B. Yeats: Letters,ed. Clifford Bax (1946)

113. LORNA REYNOLDS, Review, The Dublin Magazine, 491January-March 1947

Collected Poems, (1950)114. [OLIVER EDWARDS], Review, Rann, Summer 1950 493

CONTENTS

115. RICHARD ELLMANN, 'The Identity of Yeats', The Kenyon 496Review, Summer 1951

Collected Plays (1952)116. FRANK O'CONNOR, 'A Lyric Voice in the Irish Theatre', 500

The New York Times Book Review, 31 May 1953117. ANONYMOUS, Review, The Listener, 5 March 1953 504

The Autobiography of William Butler Yeats (1953)118. HORACE GREGORY, 'Yeats Revisited', Poetry, June 1954 506

Letters to Katharine Tynan (1953)119. EDITH SHACKLETON, 'Yeats as a Young Man', Britain 510

Today, October 1953

W. B. Yeats and T. Sturge Moore. Their Correspondence 190U1937, ed. Ursula Bridge (1953)

120. C[ID] C[ORMAN], Review, Black Mountain Review, Spring 5121954

Letters, ed. Allan Wade (1954)121. C. DAY LEWIS, Review of The- Letters of W. B. Yeats and 515

Richard Ellmann's The Identity of Yeats, The London Magazine,November 1954

122. MADELEINE-L. CAZAMIAN, from 'La Correspondance 519de W.B. Yeats', Etudes Anglaises, January-March 1955, trans.Michael Glencross, 1999

123. CLEANTH BROOKS, 'Yeats's Letters', The Yale Review, 524June 1955

124. H.W. HAUSERMANN, Review, English Studies, October 1955 527125. F. W. DUPEE, 'The Deeds And Dreams Of Yeats', Partisan

Review, Winter 1956 530

Autobiographies (1955)126. ALLAN WADE, 'A Poet Young and Old', Time and Tide, 26

March 1955 534127. L. A. G. STRONG, 'Yeats at His Ease', The London Magazine,

March 1955 537128. DONALD DAVIE, 'Yeats and Pound', The Dublin Magazine,

October-December 1955 , 546

The Variorum Edition of the Poems of W. B. Yeats,eds Peter AUt and Russell K. Alspach (1957)

129. THOMAS PARKINSON, 'Contesting a Will', The Kenyon 550

CONTENTS

Review, Winter 1958130. PETER URE, 'Review', English Studies, August 1960 556

Mythologies (1959)131. T. R. HENN, 'A Look into Darkness', New Statesman, 559

11 April 1959

The Senate Speeches ofW. B. Yeats, ed. Donald R. Pearce (1960)132. [DAVID PAUL], 'Poet as Senator', The Times Literary Supple- 562

ment, 22 December 1961133. W. B. STANFORD, 'Yeats in the Irish Senate', Review of 564

English Literature, July 1963

Essays and Introductions (1961)134. JOHN UNTERECKER, Review, Modern Drama, September 572

1962

Essays and Introductions (1961) and Explorations (1961)135. H. R. MacCALLUM, from 'W.B. Yeats: The Shape Changer 574

and His Critics', University of Toronto Quarterly, April 1963

Memoirs, ed. Denis Donoghue (1972)136. JOHN BOLAND, 'Poet's Self-Portrait', Hibernia, 16 February 578

1973137. J O H N O'RIORDAN, 'The Mask of Yeats', Library Review, 580

Spring 1973138. J O H N BRYSON, from 'Unexpurgated Yeats', Books and 584

Bookmen, March 1973

The Collected Letters of W. B. Yeats, Volume I: 1865-1895, ed.John Kelly and Eric Domville (assoc. ed.), (1986)

139. TOM PAULIN, 'Dreadful Sentiments', London Review of 587Books, 3 April 1986

140. PHILLIP L. MARCUS, 'Yeats in his Letters: A Review 593Essay', Yeats Annual, 6, London, 1988

Selected Reviews of Plays in Performance

Cathleen ni Houlihan (1902 Dublin performance)141. STEPHEN GWYNN, from 'Beginnings of Irish Drama', 605

Irish Literature and Drama in the English Language: A ShortHistory, London, 1936

CONTENTS

The Hour Glass and Cathleen ni Houlihan(May 1903 London performances)

142. [ARTHUR BIGHAM WALKLEY], 'The Irish National 607Theatre' , The Times Literary Supplement, 8 May 1903

The King's Threshold (October 1903 performance)143. ANONYMOUS, 'The Irish National Theatre' , The Freeman's 612

Journal, 8 October 1903

The King's Threshold and Cathleen ni Houlihan(October 1903 performances)

144. JOSEPH HOLLOWAY, from Joseph Holloway's Abbey Theatre: 615A Selection from his Unpublished Journal Impressions of a DublinPlaygoer, eds Robert Hogan and Michael J. O'Neill, Carbon-dale and Edwardsville, 1967

The King's Threshold (April 1904 London performance)145. L. L. L., 'The Poet's Right', T.P.'s Weekly, 8 April 1904 618

On Baile's Strand (December 1904 performance)146. R. M., 'The Abbey Theatre: Irish Players in Irish Plays', 621

The Dublin Evening Mail, 28 December 1904147. [PARTHUR GRIFFITH], from 'All Ireland', The United 624

Irishman, 31 December 1904148. MAURICE JOY, 'Mr Yeats's New Play', The Speaker, 627

7 January 1905

Deirdre (November 1906 Abbey Theatre performance)149. JOSEPH HOLLOWAY, from Joseph Holloway's Abbey Theatre: 629

A Selection from his Unpublished Journal Impressions of a DublinPlaygoer, eds Robert Hogan and Michael J. O'Neill,Carbondale and Edwardsville, 1967

Deirdre (1909 London performance)150. ANONYMOUS, 'Deirdre', Times of India (Bombay), 10 June 631

1909151. MAX BEERBOHM, from 'Irish Players', The Saturday 632

Review, 12 June 1909

Cathleen ni Houlihan (1910 performance)152. ANONYMOUS, Two Reviews, Leeds Mercury, 15 April 1910 634

and Yorkshire Evening News, 15 April 1910

xvn

CONTENTS

The Player Queen (1919 performance)153. J[AMES] S[TRACHEY], 'Swinburne And Mr Yeats', The 635

Athenceum, 6 June 1919

The Only Jealousy of Emer (1922 Amsterdam performance)154. ROSELINDE SUPHEERT, from 'Intermezzo: The Dutch 637

History, of The Only Jealousy of Emer', Yeats in Holland: TheReception of the Work of W. B. Yeats in the Netherlands BeforeWorld War Two, Amsterdam, 1995

Purgatory (1938 Abbey Theatre performances)155. UNA ELLIS-FERMOR, 'Dramatic Notes', English, 1938 640156. ANONYMOUS, Four reviews in The Dublin Evening Mail: 641

1. 'Drama Begins with Poets', 11 August 1938;2. 'Mr W. B. Yeats's New Play', 11 August 1938;3. 'Yeats Play Not Understood', 11 August 1938;4. 'Puzzle of the New Play', 12 August 1938

The Unicorn from the Stars (1940 German performance)157. SUSANNE SCHAUP in Liam Miller, The Noble Drama of 651

W. B. Yeats, Dublin and Atlantic Highlands, 1977

Calvary and The Resurrection (1965 Dublin performances)158. JAMES FLANNERY, 'Action and Reaction at the Dublin 653

Theatre Festival', The Dublin Magazine, Autumn/Winter 1966

Yeats plays at the Lyric Theatre, Belfast, 1965159. MARY O'MALLEY, 'The Dream Itself, Threshold, Autumn 662

1965

Cuchulain Cycle (October 1979 New York performances)160. BARBARA CROSSETTE, 'Off Broadway Offers Yeats and 667

Beckett', The New York Times, 12 October 1979

At the Hawk's Well, The Cat and the Moon, The Dreaming of theBones, and Cathleen ni Houlihan

(1984 Peacock Theatre, Dublin, performances)161. CHARLES HUNTER, 'The Fascination of What's 671

Difficult', The Irish Times, 21 June 1984

Yeats Theatre Festival, 1991162. JOHN DEVITT, 'Art and the Civic Life: A Personal 674

Response to the Yeats International Theatre Festival', Irish-America Magazine, 1993

XVll l