W. B. Yeats: Selected Poetry

W. B. Yeats: Selected Poetry presents a representative selection from the remarkable poetic career of William Butler Yeats, one of the most important figures in Irish and twentieth-century literature. Edited by literary scholar A. Norman Jeffares, the collection provides readers with an accessible introduction to the development of Yeats’s poetry across different stages of his career.

Yeats’s poetry is notable for its combination of myth, symbolism, history, politics, personal experience, and philosophical reflection. His poetic style evolved considerably over the course of his life, making a selected collection particularly useful for understanding the breadth and development of his work.

In his earlier poetry, Yeats frequently drew upon Irish mythology, folklore, legends, and the landscape of Ireland. These elements helped establish the distinctive imaginative world associated with his early writing and reflected his involvement in the Irish literary revival.

As his poetry developed, his themes became increasingly complex. Questions of age, mortality, political conflict, love, artistic creation, violence, historical change, and the nature of civilization became central to his mature work.

Yeats’s relationship with Irish political and cultural history is an important feature of his poetry. The political transformation of Ireland and the revolutionary events of the early twentieth century profoundly influenced his thinking. Rather than presenting simple political arguments, however, his poems often explore the emotional and philosophical consequences of historical change.

The collection also demonstrates Yeats’s extraordinary interest in symbolism and recurring images. Gyres, towers, birds, stones, trees, landscapes, and mythological figures appear throughout his work, often carrying meanings that develop across different poems.

Another important feature of Yeats’s poetry is the tension between the personal and the historical. His poems frequently move between intimate experiences and much larger questions concerning nations, civilizations, time, and human existence.

The influence of Irish identity and cultural history is particularly important. Yeats played a major role in the Irish literary revival and was deeply involved in the development of Ireland’s theatrical and literary culture. His poetry therefore provides both a personal artistic record and a reflection of major changes in Irish history.

A. Norman Jeffares’s editorial approach makes the volume useful for readers studying Yeats’s development as a poet. A selected collection allows readers to encounter representative works without requiring a complete multi-volume edition, making it particularly suitable for students and general readers.

Published by Pan Books in association with Macmillan London in 1974, this paperback edition contains 228 pages and measures 4.5 × 0.5 × 7 inches. It is a compact vintage edition for collections devoted to Irish literature, poetry, literary modernism, and twentieth-century writing.

• Poetry by W. B. Yeats
• Edited by A. Norman Jeffares
• Published by Pan Books in association with Macmillan London
• 1974 Edition
• Paperback binding
• 228 pages
• Size: 4.5 × 0.5 × 7 inches
• Language: English
• Selection of Yeats’s poetry
• Covers different stages of his poetic development
• Explores Irish mythology, history, politics, love, and mortality
• Important example of Irish and twentieth-century poetry
• Useful for students and readers of literary history
• Appealing vintage paperback for collectors

🔹 Collector’s Note

This 1974 Pan Books/Macmillan paperback edition of W. B. Yeats: Selected Poetry is a useful vintage collection for enthusiasts of Irish literature and modern poetry. Edited by A. Norman Jeffares, it offers a representative introduction to Yeats’s changing poetic style and his recurring concerns with Irish identity, history, mythology, politics, art, and mortality. Its compact 228-page format makes it a practical and collectible edition for readers of classic poetry.