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religion of William Butler Yeats
Title
The religion of William Butler Yeats.
Creator
Turso, Betty Doris., Florida Atlantic University, Peyton, Ann
Abstract/Description
William Butler Yeats created his own mythology which is a religion unto itself. He took the myths of ancient heroic Ireland and combined these with the dominant Christian beliefs in Ireland during his lifetime and created a new religion that would serve to unite Ireland that was divided along religious lines. My thesis will show that Yeats, out of a fardel of tales, created not only his own mythology but a religion as well. With the help of the theories of Joseph Campbell, I will prove that...
Show moreWilliam Butler Yeats created his own mythology which is a religion unto itself. He took the myths of ancient heroic Ireland and combined these with the dominant Christian beliefs in Ireland during his lifetime and created a new religion that would serve to unite Ireland that was divided along religious lines. My thesis will show that Yeats, out of a fardel of tales, created not only his own mythology but a religion as well. With the help of the theories of Joseph Campbell, I will prove that Yeats's writing provided a virtual medium through which he disseminated his belief system. Therefore, this exploration is essential to give a deeper understanding to the total scope of Yeats's work.
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Date Issued
1996
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/15273
Subject Headings
Yeats, W B--(William Butler),--1865-1939--Criticism and interpretation, Religious poetry--History and criticism, Religion in literature, Symbolism in literature
Format
Document (PDF)
Augustinian virtue in the Dickensian world
Title
Augustinian virtue in the Dickensian world: the role of Christian friendship in the conversion of souls and the move toward the Heavenly City.
Creator
Kriegel, Jill A., Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, Department of English
Abstract/Description
The novels of Charles Dickens resonate with ancient and Christian moral messages: From plots and characters representative of Victorian ideals and concerns emerge themes that reflect centuries of moral, and, as I argue, specifically Augustinian, teaching. While the Christian overtones of Charles Dickens's novels are seldom denied, their Augustinian nature, their purpose, and Dickens's hopes for their effect are rarely given their proper due. In opposition to the postmodern idea of an...
Show moreThe novels of Charles Dickens resonate with ancient and Christian moral messages: From plots and characters representative of Victorian ideals and concerns emerge themes that reflect centuries of moral, and, as I argue, specifically Augustinian, teaching. While the Christian overtones of Charles Dickens's novels are seldom denied, their Augustinian nature, their purpose, and Dickens's hopes for their effect are rarely given their proper due. In opposition to the postmodern idea of an increasing nihilism and despair in Dickens's message, I examine instead his steadfast fascination with and joy in the power of charitable friendships-friendships that embody goodness and the possibility for conversion, friendships that are especially noteworthy amid the societal darkness ushered in by the crises of faith that accompanied nineteenth-century industrialization, commercialization, and de-moralization. Preparing to highlight the undeniable moral value in both the rejected and realized friendships and conversions of Dickens's Martin Chuzzlewit, Bleak House, and Great Expectations, first I focus on true friendship as a necessary part of a soul's ascent developed in Plato's Symposium and Phaedrus, as well as in Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, illustrating how these classical texts anticipate the Augustinian notion of a soul's transformation from the earthly city to the city of God. With this literary continuum thus established, I contend that the Heavenly City as it is reflected in the Dickensian world relies on its virtuous citizens, those true friends who consistently manifest Christian charity, humility, and forgiveness.
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Date Issued
2010
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/2683142
Subject Headings
Criticism and interpretation, Criticism and interpretation, Christianity in literature, Criticism and interpretation, Religion in literature, Criticism and interpretation, Friendship in literature, Criticism and interpretation, Soul, Christianity
Format
Document (PDF)
Merely to officiate light"
Title
" Merely to officiate light": the subordination and glorification of God the Son in Paradise Lost.
Creator
Cruikshank, Kathryn H., Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College
Abstract/Description
This thesis considers the role and function of God the Son within the anti-Trinitarian system John Milton envisions in his epic poem, Paradise Lost. In the poem, God the Father frequently acts independently of His Son, and the divine attributes that traditionally describe the Son, including His timelessness, no longer apply to the character Milton constructs. Despite this apparent degradation, Milton still elevates the Son and considers Him to be a character worthy of our respect. To account...
Show moreThis thesis considers the role and function of God the Son within the anti-Trinitarian system John Milton envisions in his epic poem, Paradise Lost. In the poem, God the Father frequently acts independently of His Son, and the divine attributes that traditionally describe the Son, including His timelessness, no longer apply to the character Milton constructs. Despite this apparent degradation, Milton still elevates the Son and considers Him to be a character worthy of our respect. To account for this seeming paradox, I propose a reading of Paradise Lost that does not dismiss Milton's heretical belief in a subjected Son, but rather uses it as a way envision a new form of power. To do so, I compare the relationship between God the Father and His Son in terms of light and sun imagery, to demonstrate how power is divided and distributed between the two, according to the scientific principles of Milton's day. In addition, I consider how Michel Foucault's concept of the docile body both applies to the Son and explains His deference to the Father. Through these analyses, I hope to demonstrate that the Son's power exists as the result of properly exercising His free will, a will that would not have been His own had He been one with His Father.
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Date Issued
2009
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/209988
Subject Headings
Criticism and interpretation, Religion, Symbolism in literature, God in literature, Religion and literature, Criticism and interpretation
Format
Document (PDF)