The Wild Swans at Coole

Name: The Wild Swans at Coole
Author: W. B. Yeats

By W. B. Yeats

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British Literature Poetry

About This Book

This collection gathers lyrical poems that blend personal remembrance, mythic imagery, and reflections on aging, love, and political violence. Several elegies mourn lost friends and fallen soldiers while contemplative lyrics watch nature—swans, moon, and landscape—to probe transience and longing. Other pieces take up Irish identity and the moral ambiguities of war, balancing formal restraint with intense feeling. Recurring figures from earlier work reappear in dreamlike sequences, and short dramatic or narrative poems experiment with rhythm and voice. The book balances melancholy and aesthetic craft, moving between intimate memoir, symbolic meditation, and quietly ironic observation.

About the Author

W. B. Yeats

William Butler Yeats (1865-1939) was an Irish poet, dramatist, and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. A key figure in the Irish Literary Revival, Yeats's work often reflects his deep interest in mysticism, folklore, and the complexities of the human experience. His poetry is characterized by its lyrical beauty and philosophical depth, exploring themes of love, politics, and the passage of time. Notable works include "The Tower" and "The Second Coming," which showcase his innovative use of imagery and symbolism. Yeats was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1923, cementing his legacy as a pivotal voice in modern poetry.