Thank you so much for this portrait of a (IMHO) major poet of British history. It wasn't until the publication of 'Red Shelley' by Paul Foote that his political works became better known - until then he was portrayed as a dreaming lyrical poet who died so young that his work (which was strongly censored in publications was dismissed as immature. Mary Shelley when widowed, was forced due to financial circumstances imposed by Shelley's father to remain silent on any controversial aspect of his life with many documents either withheld or destroyed by the family. Richard Holmes 'The Pursuit' is a masterpiece of unravelling Shelley's life.
Thank you for featuring P.B. Shelley. I'm a hardcore fan of this incredibly talented writer. One of a kind in character and so way ahead of his time. ❤️
Ahead of his time? He was a complete fool, and if he influenced future generations it is to the detriment of all. He damaged everyone who came near him. He ruined lives, and did more harm to society that almost any writer of his few years on earth. If he was a one of a kind character, good. Even one of him was too many. Unfortunately, there's nothing one of a kind about him. There were thousands of fools just like him then, and millions now. They're the pseudo-intellectuals who have all the answers, even though they've been nowhere, do nothing important, and lack anything close to a good education. They're the ones with egos as big as the moon, and intellects as small as a microbe, but who think they know everything. Women's rights? His idea of women's rights was based on how many women he could have sex with without getting into trouble. He was a toad, and even Byron did not like him, despite the rosy picture this video paints of their "friendship". You have "lady" in your name. If that is in any way true of your character, your liking of Shelly is sorely misplaced. If it is in no way true, if you think there is any good at all in his lifestyle or his actual beliefs, then congratulations, you are one of those severely damaged by Shelly and his true ideas.
@@jamesaritchie1 You could've expressed all those sentiments without insulting me, you moron. You talked as if you were clean and not stupid like the men you just described. Your behavior simply showcased you aren't different from the awful kind you despise. If you are harboring that much negativity, try doing it with some dignity and be respectful here.
Interesting that Eton was back then already full of bullies. Also how amazing that he was scientifically so talented. Like Da Vinci highly intelligent and multitalented.
The narrator's clear diction and refined enunciation make for pleasurable listening. Looking forward to similar bios of other English romantic and pastoral poets.
@@Danthehorse It is the kind of English that can be easily understood by any native speaker anywhere and by those who speak English as a later learned language. Diction this clear and precise is often interpreted as something too contrived but our narrator deftly avoids that pitfall. It's a pleasure. I tire easily of speakers who are unaware of the need or unwilling to take the time to make themselves understood.
@@Danthehorse My curiousity piqued, I pulled up a couple of videos featruing Vance in the spotlight. Yes, his normal voice is quite different but still easily passes even the sternest test. I love the English language in the "hands" of someone who plays it fluidly like the fine instrument it is.
I'm sure Shelley was humming the tune that came popular in our time, " Come Sail Away, come sail away with me" The well known band Styx, written by Dennis DeYoung perhaps channeled Shelley as he penned this renowned and timeless song.
I remember borrowing a book of his poems from the uni library at a summer course in Dijon, France , when I was twenty (a very stimulating two months - I'm from Sweden and the rest of the students who had gathered there were from all over Europe, Japan and some from the US) . The book ended with his final, unfinished piece "The Triumph of Life" and the final half line "Then what is Life, I cried .---". .I figure they were not actually his *very* last lines, though - guess he had not pencilled them in a few days before he went out on that fatal sailing trip! :)
Despite the note at the end, the background music is by Schubert, not Mozart. I think it is from his final String Quintet in C Minor, but it could be from the Death and the Maiden string quartet.
Do you think He wrote Frankenstein? I dont mean to take away from Mary's capabilities in any way but in this case it just seems like something Percy would have done...
I had forgotten about this theory. It's very interesting to think about. Look into the Villa Diodati on Lake Geneva, Switzerland during the year without summer, 1816. Personally, I say Mary wrote it, but that doesn't mean Percy didn't offer feedback, so don't let me stop you from exploring further...
During the time Percy and Mary were together displays of electrical energy were very popular and it is likely that they both went to public autopsies which were all the rage so the Frankenstein novel was very timely. Either could have written it and as is mentioned they both surely talked at length about such possibilities. ---------------- I have not read anything by Mary Shelley other than Frankenstein. I see she wrote several books after Percy's far too soon death but i dont know how they compare to that masterpiece. I am a huge fan of Shelley's poetry, the authorship of Frankenstein is just a whimsical wonderment. Women have been cheated out of credit and compensation for their works in every field of endeavor. It's a credit to Mary that she was able to carry on through all the hardship and grief to make a living and care for her child. ----------------- On the other hand I dont believe for a second that Shakespeare, the uneducated actor, could possibly have written any of the plays or sonnets attributed to him, my guess is Marlow who supposedly said in a bar "All they that love not tobacco and boys are fools". Then faked his death and began writing under the pseudonym of Shakespeare.
@@rookhoatzin Very true about Mary's resilience. And I agree with you wholeheartedly on the Shakespeare authorship question. It was 100% not the Stratford man. My belief is that Edward de Vere was the author based on how close his biography is to the incidents in the plays and a lot of other factors. I can hear my Shakespeare professors shouting in my ear, but to each their own, of course.
Shelley and Keats both heavily influence my poetic writing. Shelley's rebelliousness against religion, and Keats's unique interpretation of beauty specifically. It is fitting that they are both buried in the same spot, if I am ever to visit Rome in my life, it is definitely to give my thanks to them.
This is a wonderful introduction to Shelley’s context which influenced his work. Truely fascinating. I would love for a documentary about Foydor Dostoevsky!
0:11 Franz Schubert, String Quartet No. 14 in D minor, D 810 „Der Tod und das Mädchen“, II. Andante con moto 14:50 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Sonata No. 11 in A major, K. 331 / 300i, I. Andante grazioso - Var. V. Adagio To all who wonder, I hope this helps (-:
Could you really make more boring such a vivid life? While full of facts and pictures of houses and landscapes, it is a staid biography that misses the beauty of Shelley's life. No mention of the Romantic currents in which Percy lived and was influenced, who he read and was moved by -- no mention of Plato who inspired him to wax about poesis and the redemptive power of art -- such as with his Defence of Poetry, a rewriting of the history of the West with the poet and artist at its center: forget about all of this? For a man who gave humankind such a magnificent vision of the transformative power of imagination, this documentary sucked the marrow out of the man's life and robbed his spirit from his soul... try again!
An exquisite documentary…so….educational…and….deep. What great legacy Shelley gave in those thirty years of life…what…love and poetry he brought..to bring courage…to those in poverty, sadness and strife 😔
I noticed that this biography wrote that Shelley was inspired by : Rights of Man by Thomas Paine Enquiry Concerning Political Justice by William Godwin and Vindication of the Rights of Women by Mary Wollstonecraft. I was curious as to why these books were listed in the order above because they were published in a different order and a very important book was left out: 1790 Vindication of the Rights of Man by Mary Wollstonecraft 1791 Rights of Man by Thomas Paine 1792 Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft 1793 Enquiry Concerning Political Justice by William Godwin I highly recommend Romantic Outlaws by Charlotte Gordan, which is an excellent biography of Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley.
Thank you for so many videos on literature. I've now seen 3 and look forward to them all. If you have not covered Thomas Wyatt, Philip Sydney, Edmund Spenser, and Thomas Campion, please consider doing so. If you have, I'll find them.
Had Shelley finished The Triumph of Life, I think that would have been his greatest work. I do agree that Mont Blanc is the peak of his finished works, so to speak.
Shelley was certainly on the list of poets whose poetry I read, but I had not known so much about his life -- except for the Byron and Frankenstein connection -- until now. Now consider . . . that Never before in our entire history, have so many educated people lived so freely, so abundantly, and now, so connected to a shared, worldwide experience with near-instant communication. It's GUARANTEED to Wake THIS Generation Up.
An important moment and fact left out here is the suicide of Shelley's first wife when she discovered he no longer loved her. Note: A good chance that Shelley was killed when his boat was rammed and sunk in the Gulf of Spezia became slightly known about 1990. Shelley and Byron MIGHT have run into some pirates while drinking before Shelley went sailing.
Shelly seems to have been a spoiled, selfish, shallow young man, using and abandoning various people, women and children, driving his wife to suicide. Those were hard times, but that was no excuse for his selfish behavior.
Shelley did suffer during his early school years. Shelley didn't drive Harriet to her suicide, Harriet had an affair and fell pregnant and couldn't face the consequences as much as I hate Shelley's union with Mary Godwin, her father William bled him dry forever pounding him for money and Shelley always giving. Shelley wasn't at all selfish. Yes, Harriet was right that Shelley was attracted to Mary because she was Mary Wolstoncrafts and Godwin's daughter and yes Harriet was virtually dropped which was probably the most selfish thing Shelley ever did, Fanny Wolstoncraft also committed suicide. It was just an all out shame Shelley felt compelled to be with Mary Godwin. He was better suited to Claire. She loved him wholeheartedly.
Oh yes, happens so often. So much thought and time goes into these documentaries and then they put music all (or most) of the way through. Not against music to punctuate but preferably not as wallpaper!
Shelley, in leaving his first wife, brought great shame to her resulting in her committing suicide. What a great guy. He believed in equal rights of man but not for his wife.....sheeshh.
The bottle message mentioned here wz usual used by the prisoners who were prisoned near ocean to send messages that there presence they are still alive! Rumours to create that they are missing
How really this writter die without censorship as we told: While vacationing in Italy with wife Mary and friend and fellow poet Lord Byron, Shelley decided to pay a call to the vampiric residents of a Lake Trasimeno castle. The hosts, unimpressed with his reputation, drank his blood and then threw his body over the castle ramparts into the lake. Shelley's drained and battered corpse eventually washed ashore and was later cremated on location.
@@rlukins like official report of his death just like those of Rudolph Valentino ,Rasputin and few others...stupid peoples would eat every shit officially
@@Mr11ESSE111 My apologies. You're right; Shelley's murder by vampires and the subsequent conspiracy of silence makes more sense. May your light continue to shine into these dark corners of history.
Shelley's life was a disaster from the very beginning to end. There was not one single thing he happened to do right! Read the whole thing on Wikipedia. He must have been educated at home and joined the church. His life was a mess because of the many books he read without proper guidance. He could not fit in the system. Particularly "free love" doctrine and atheism made him a horrible man. But it was his adulterous relationship to Mary when his marriage to Harriet was under stress what truly broke the last parts of his surviving soul and brains ever since he was expelled from Oxford and his life was ever precipitated towards the disaster... He was truly doomed since a child as he could not find a place where to belong. He needed extra care, protection and guidance.
What would Shelly think of the out-workings of his iconoclasm, 2 centuries later? WOKE-ISM; Multi-3rd-World-Culturalism; transgender-ism & 30 plus genders; Apologists for the likes of Hamas and Hezbollah..and blah blah blah 😢
Shouldn’t you be referring to yourself as a Brit, then, and not as a Scot? Shelley was most definitely an Englishman-not a Scot, an Irishman, or a Welshman. He was English.