Percy Bysshe Shelley, Poet and Pioneer
Henry S. Salt
- Edition: First Edition
- Publisher: Reeves and Turner, London
- Published: 1896
- Length: 191
- Format: Hardback
- Second Edition
- 1913 Watts & Co., London, 135 pages
- Second Edition Reprint
- 1924 George Allen & Unwin, London, 185 pages
- Second Edition Reprint
- 1968 Kennikat Press Corp., Port Washington, New York, Hardback, 87 pages
Summary
In Percy Bysshe Shelley, Poet and Pioneer, Henry S. Salt presents a compelling, nuanced interpretation of the great Romantic poet and revolutionary thinker. This work is a culmination of Salt’s earlier studies—his Shelley Monograph (1888) and Shelley’s Principles (1892)—now expanded and reimagined into a single, insightful volume. Salt’s approach is neither blind hero-worship nor reactionary critique. Instead, he offers a balanced, in-depth exploration of Shelley’s life, works, and philosophies, which, in Salt’s view, are best understood through the poet’s remarkable consistency of character.
Rather than shying away from controversy, Salt embraces it, tackling both the misconceptions of Shelley’s early critics and the misinterpretations of his modern admirers. He exposes the blunders of past criticism, arguing that only by understanding these historical missteps can we truly grasp Shelley’s significance as a poet and social pioneer. This monograph is not a dry biography but a passionate defence of Shelley’s legacy, underscored by Salt’s belief that Shelley’s revolutionary ideas remain as vital today as ever.
Salt’s study is especially valuable for readers sympathetic to Shelley’s aims—his commitment to liberty, equality, and justice. Through Salt’s rigorous analysis, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Poet and Pioneer not only reasserts Shelley’s place as a giant of English literature but also as a pioneering thinker whose ideals still challenge and inspire.
Content
- Preface
- Rival Views of Shelley
- Heir to Field Place
- The Education of a Gentleman
- Marriage Without Love
- Love Without Marriage
- The Hermit of Marlow
- Exile in Italy
- Cor Cordium
- The Poet
- The Pioneer
What the Critics Said
“Mr. Salt is to be congratulated on this delightful little book which quite quietly and conclusively proves the great good sense of Shelley as a pioneer.”—Daily Herald.
“It is still the best short study of a great subject.”—Daily News.
“It is a profoundly true book in its insight into Shelley’s genius.”—Spectator.
Reviews
- Percy Bysshe Shelley, Poet and Pioneer: A Biographical Study The Vegetarian Messenger, July 1896
- Poet and Pioneer The Dial, August 16, 1896
- Percy Bysshe Shelley: Poet and Pioneer The Nation, July 9, 1896
- Mr. Salt’s Shelley The Guardian, 19 May, 1913
