Poetry of William Butler Yeats Review - Book Report/Review Example

The shape is a combination of a lion body and the head of a man. Yeats refers to, “A shape with lion body and the head of a man,” (Yeats, 14). This is indicative of the mystical world Yeats has created in this specific poetic world or anarchy and chaos. b. Yeats believes that the new revelation will be born in Bethlehem. Again one recognizes the Biblical allusion, as Bethlehem was the town where Jesus was born. Rather than specifically holding Christian intentions it seems that Yeats is implementing these elements as a means of harnessing the power of Biblical allusion to the thematic aims of this poetic work. a. The phrase “Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,” conjures evil as it related to how the loosening gyre has finally released and all law has ceased.

It also harkens to mind lawlessness and the ensuing evil that would occur in the instance that this anarchy truly occur. b. The phrase the “The blood-dimmed tide is loosed,” conjures evil as one considers oceans and rivers full of nothing but blood from destruction. The image is also significant as one recognizes the uniform and all-encompassing nature of oceans and their potential for overtaking land, just like the aforementioned anarchy. c. The phrase “and everywhere/ The ceremony of innocence is drowned;” continues the imagery of a river.

This sentence extends the image, drawing a metaphor between innocence and life, as it is now drowned. Again, it operates as an interrelated element with the earlier recognized notions of ocean and anarchy. In this sense, the anarchy has devoured the innocence and goodness. d. The line “The best lack all conviction,” considers that as the world is falling apart the very fabric of society is reduced further as the people who could potentially enact change lack all conviction. This heightens the notion