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Durham E-Theses Durham E-Theses To see as a God sees : ctions of self in the works of P.B. Shelley and John Keats. Sandy, Mark How to cite: Sandy, Mark (1997) To see as a God sees : ctions of self in the works of P.B. Shelley and John Keats., Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/1712/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 'To see as a God sees' Fictions of the Self in the Works A thesis submitted in December 1997 for the degree of Ph. D to the University of Durham By Mark Sandy. (Department of English Studies) The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published without the written consent of the author and information derived from it should be acknowledged. y 12 MAY1398 --- 'ý. This thesis offers a comparative examination of the works of Keats and Shelley, two important second-generation Romantic poets. It draws upon the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche to illuminate their treatment of the self. Despite the significant cultural, historical and generic differences, the works of Keats and Shelley share Nietzsche's conviction that art and the aesthetic are life-affirming. Nietzsche's understanding of the self as fictional is viewed, first, as being anticipated by the writings of Keats and Shelley and, secondly, as an integral part of modern constructions of Romanticism. Chapter One surveys a variety of Romantic literary criticism. Both aesthetic and theoretical readings of Keats and Shelley are shown either to have drawn parallels between their works and Nietzsche's philosophy or (particularly in the case of de Ilan and deconstructionists after him> to have employed certain Nietzschean critical practices and concepts. Nietzsche's philosophy is shown to have become an integral part of Romantic literary criticism. This chapter also summarises Nietzsche's critique of metaphysics, his viewsw on art, his understanding of the lyric poet, his concept of the Overman [Nbermensch), and his account of the self as a fiction. In Chapter Two the prose writings of Keats and Shelley are regarded as precursors of a Nietzschean emphasis on self-invention. Shelley's definition of poetry in A Defence of Poetry is read as encouraging a continual process of metaphorical self-revision. Shelley's aesthetics of self-revision are paralleled with Keats's concept of "Negative Capability" and the "Vale of Soul-making". The prose writings of Keats and Shelley are considered as foreshadowing Nietzsche's ideas about fiction as a mode of knowing. Chapter Three offers a comparative reading of Keats's Endymion and Shelley's Alastor, exploring how their narratives probe the darker depths of the romance world. The tension between tragic reality and blissful illusion is considered in the light of Nietzsche's Apollonian and Dionysian dynamic in The Birth of Tragedy. Keats and Shelley have recourse to a series of negative fictions in order to confront the tragedy underlying romance's illusions. Chapter Four understands the major lyrical poetry of Keats and Shelley as confronting the limitations of language, art and existence. The need for the lyric poet to joyously affirm life, even in the face of tragedy and loss, is discussed in terms of Nietzsche's later view of the Dionysian category in Twilight of the Idols. These confrontations are viewed as testifying to the poetic power of Keatsian and Shelleyan fiction-making. Chapter Five examines how Shelley's Adonais remoulds Keats's poetic character and the circumstances surrounding his death to ensure that Keats and Adonais attain a posthumous existence. Shelley is viewed as redeeming Keats and Adonais, yet as orientated by the poetic logic of Adonais towards a confrontation with his own death. The final chapter offers a comparative reading of Keats's "Hyperion" fragments and Shelley's incomplete The Triumph of Life. The processes of self- invention at work in these fragments are viewed both as exemplifying Nietzsche's concept of becoming and as offering a critique of Enlightenment ideas about history and the self. The abrupt endings of these Romantic fragments place a responsibility on the reader to countersign the poetic identities of Keats and Shelley. To countersign these fragments is to participate in an affirmative Nietzschean "yes" saying, which will ensure the posthumous reputations of Keats and Shelley as writers. i Contents Contents i-ii Acknowledgements 111 List of Abbreviations iv-xi Preface xii-xix Chapter 1: Using and Abusing Nietzsche in the Criticism 1-38 of Keats and Shelley Chapter 2: "Being within our Being": Aesthetics of Self-Revision in Shelley's A Defence of Poetry and Keats's Letters 39-61 Chapter 3: "Faery Lands orlorn" : Tragic Romance in Edenion and ,Glastor 62-129 Chapter 4; "No Voice Will Tell"; Fiction-Making in the Lyrics of Keats and Shelley 130-96 1i Chapter 5: "When I Have Fears That I Hay Cease To Be": Sheller's Re-invention of Myth, History and Identity in Adonais 197-241 Chapter 6: "Knowledge Enormous". Self-Fashioningin Shelley La The Triunmh of Life and Keats's "Hy=perion" Fragments 242-70 271-88 iii I am extremely grateful to Professor Michael O'Neill, who has expertly supervised my thesis from the outset, making constructive criticisms of my work, which have helped to shape my own thinking and writing about the works of Keats and Shelley, I owe Michael particular thanks for the time and care he spent reading this thesis in its final stages. For insightful suggestions and advice on matters of literary theory and aspects of Nietzsche's philosophy I am indebted to Dr. Sean Burke and Professor Patricia Waugh. I an also grateful to Sean and Patricia for their enthusiasm, encouragement, and friendship. I owe an equal debt of gratitude to Fran Brearton both as a friend and for taking the time, out of her own hectic schedule, to proof-read a final draft of my thesis. I would also like to thank Scott Masson for his invaluable advice on the difficulties of translating Nietzsche's texts, I owe thanks to Bert Nutter and John Wakely, whose never-ending enthusiasm for literature have been, in moments of doubt, a reassuring reminder of why I began writing this thesis. In addition, I an grateful to Professor Nicholas Roe and an anonymous reader at Romanticism, who made useful suggestions about an earlier version of my reading of Keats's "Hyperion" fragments, which now forms part of my final chapter. Most importantly, I am forever indebted to Hazel Storr for her continued encouragement, support, advice, patience, endurance, understanding and, above all, love. iv List of Abbreviations JI The Poems of John Keats, ed. Jack Stillinger (London: Heinemann, 1978). KL.. The Letters of John Keats, ed. Ryder E. Rollins. 2 vols. (Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 1958). SPV Shelley: Poetical Works, ed. Thomas Hutchinson, corr. G. M. Matthews (London: Oxford UP, 1970). All quotations taken from this edition unless otherwise indicated. Spp Shelleys Poetry and Prose; Authoritative Texts, ed. Donald H. Reiman and Sharon B. Powers (New York: Norton, 1977). Numbers in parenthesis directly after a quotation from a work by Nietzsche normally indicate a page number, but where indicated reference is made to a standard section or subdivision of a work. Where translators have noted difficulties with translation the German has been incorporated in the text alongside its English equivalent. JaGR Beyond Good and Evil: Prelude to a Philosophy of the Future, 1973. Trans. R. J. Hollingdale and intro. Michael Tanner (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1990). V DI The Birth of Tragedy, trans. Walter Kaufmann (New York: Random, 1967). F Ecce Homo, trans and intro. R. J. Hollingdale (Harmondsworth; Penguin, 1979). aal The Gay Science, trans. Walter Kaufmann (New York; Vintage, 1974). Arabic numbers in parenthesis after a quotation indicate a section. HE Human. All Too Human; A Book For Free Spirits. 1986. Trans. R. J. Hollingdale and intro. Richard Schacht. Cambridge Texts in the History of Philosophy Ser. (Cambridge: Cambridge UP11996). IL Twilight of the Idols / The Antichrist, 1968. Trans, R. J. Hollingdale and intro, Michael Tanner (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1990). Numbers in parenthesis outside of the square brackets indicate a page number and numbers within the square brackets denote a subdivision. 111 On the Uses and Disadvantages of History for Life, the second of the Untimely Meditations. 1983. Trans. R. J. Hollingdale and intro. J. P. Stern. Texts in German Philosophy Ser. (Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1995). The Will To Power, trans. Walter Kaufmann and R. J. Hollingdale (New York: Vintage, 1968). The first arabic number in parenthesis indicates the book, the second number a section and the third refers to a subdivision. vi Thus Spoke Zarathustra: A Book For Everyone dnd o ne. 1961. Trans. and intro. R. J. Hollingdale <Harmondsworth; Penguin, 1969>. Other, Frequently Oted Works and their A breii tions: Abbreviations of critical works are arranged alphabetically by title. ADF. William A.
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