William Butler Yeats
Ireland
13 Jun 1865 // 28 Jan 1939
Poet
13 Jun 1865 // 28 Jan 1939
Poet
Quotes
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Players and painted stage took all my love,
And not those things that they were emblems of.
And not those things that they were emblems of.
Last Poems,1936-1939, The Circus Animal's Desertion,
Locke sank into a swoon;
The Garden died;
God took the spinning-jenny
Out of his side.
The Garden died;
God took the spinning-jenny
Out of his side.
The Tower, 1928. Fragments
At midnight on the Emperor's pavement flit
Flames that no faggot feeds, nor steel has lit.
Flames that no faggot feeds, nor steel has lit.
The Winding Stair and Other Poems, 1933. Byzantium
Why, what could she have done, being what she is?
Was there another Troy for her to burn?
Was there another Troy for her to burn?
The Green Helmet and Other Poems, 1910. No Second Troy
When you are old and gray and full of sleep
And nodding by the fire, take down this book.
And nodding by the fire, take down this book.
The Rose, 1893. When You Are Old
Some burn damp faggots, others may consume
The entire combustible world in one small room.
The entire combustible world in one small room.
The Wild Swans at Coole 1919. In Memory of Major Robert Gregory
O what fine thought we had because we thought that the worst rogues and rascals had died out.
Nineteen Hundred And Nineteen
In courtesy I'd have her chiefly learned;
Hearts are not had as a gift but hearts are earned.
Hearts are not had as a gift but hearts are earned.
Michael Robartes and the Dancer, 1921. A Prayer for My Daughter
Red Rose, proud Rose, sad Rose of all my days!
Come near me, while I sing the ancient ways.
Come near me, while I sing the ancient ways.
The Rose, 1893. To the Rose Upon the Rood of Time
No art can conquer the people alone - the people are conquered by an ideal of life upheld by authority.
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On Anger: "For every minute you remain angry, you give up sixty seconds of peace of mind."
Essays
Essays
On Destiny: "Our destiny exercises its influence over us even when, as yet, we have not learned its nature: it is our future that lays down the law of our today."
Human, All Too Human
Human, All Too Human
On Friendship: "A crowd is not company; and faces are but a gallery of pictures; and talk but a tinkling cymbal, where there is no love."
Essays
Essays