Percy Bysshe Shelley

Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley's portrait, by Alfred Clint
Born	August 4, 1792 Field Place, near Horsham, Sussex, England
Died	July 8, 1822 Livorno, Tuscany
Cause of death	Drowned in a storm at sea
Nationality	English
Known for	Romanticist Poetry
Father	Sir Timothy Shelley

Percy Bysshe Shelley (4 August 1792 – 8 July 1822) was an English poet of the early 1800s. He was an important poet of the second generation of the Romantic movement in English literature. Some of his most famous poems are Ozymandias and Ode to the West Wind. He was close friends with other poets like Lord Byron and John Keats. His second wife was Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein.

Early Life and Education

Shelley's father was Sir Timothy Shelley, a Whig Member of Parliament. He was the oldest son, so was expected to be a politician. His mother was Elizabeth Pilfold, who came from a landowning family. He had five sisters and two brothers.

Shelley was educated at Syon House Academy and Eton, where he was bullied for his unusual behaviour. He was called 'Mad Shelley'. He went to Oxford University and made friends with Thomas Jefferson Hogg. They were expelled for writing a pamphlet, The Necessity of Atheism, which attacked Christianity in Oxford.

Marriage

Harriet Westbrook

In August 1811, 19 years old, Shelley eloped with 16 year old Harriet Westbrook, and married her. The couple, with Harriet's older sister Eliza Westbrook, went to Dublin, Ireland. They also travelled to Lynmouth, Devon, and North Wales. Shelley published political pamphlets there.

The couple had two children: Ianthe and Charles.

Shelley then left Harriet to elope with Mary Godwin. Harriet killed herself by drowning in Serpentine River, Hyde Park.

Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin

Shelley, at 21 years old, met 16 year old Mary Godwin. They took Mary's step sister Claire Clairmont, and eloped to France in July 27, 1814. They also travelled in Switzerland and Germany. Shelley, Godwin, and Clairmont then went to Geneva to meet Lord Byron, who had started a relationship with Clairmont. The visit inspired many famous poems and books. They returned to London, and married in December 1816.

They had four children: Clara, William, Clara Everina, and Percy Florence. Percy Florence is the only child who lived to become an adult.

Poetry

Queen Mab

This is Shelley's first major poem, published in 1813. It is organised into 9 cantos (sections of long poems), and talks about the problems in society. In the poem, The fairy queen Mab takes the spirit of Ianthe, Shelley's first child, and shows what humanity should be like.

Hymn to Intellectual Beauty

This was written when Shelley was visiting Lord Byron. It is about how Shelley was influenced by nature. It uses a style similar to the poet William Wordsworth.

Mont Blanc

This is also written during the visit to Lord Byron. It talks about Mont Blanc (and the Alps).

The Revolt of Islam

This poem's original title was Laon and Cythna. It talks about religion and war.

Prometheus Unbound

This is thought as one of Shelley's greatest poems. It is about Prometheus, a Titan from greek mythology that is punished for giving fire to humans.

See Also:

- Lord Byron

- Mary Shelley

- John Keats

- Romanticist Movement (English Literature)

- Poetry