Callaghan, M. (2015) Shelley and the Ambivalence of Idealism. Keats-Shelley Journal, 64. pp. 92-104. ISSN 0453-4387
Abstract
In a departure from critics such as Stuart Sperry, who views The Triumph of Life as revealing Shelley’s movement into “mature skepticism,” this article will argue that Shelley’s skepticism is constant throughout his work, as is his preoccupation with embodying visionary thought in language. Burning with potential, the “electric life” in Shelley’s poetry is propelled by uncertainty and indefinability. The “peculiarly melodious” notes of his early poem Alastor show the embattled idealism that persists until The Triumph of Life. Idealism, though aspired towards, remains from first to last, a fraught and questioned goal in Shelley’s poetic universe.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2016 Keats-Shelley Association of America. |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Arts and Humanities (Sheffield) > School of English (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 24 Feb 2016 12:23 |
Last Modified: | 24 Jan 2017 10:59 |
Published Version: | https://muse.jhu.edu/article/629550/summary |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Keats-Shelley Association of America |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:94568 |