W B Yeats
1865 - 1939
Scion of a distinguished artistic family, Irish nationalist, Senator, playwright, theatrical impresario, disappointed lover, brooder in Celtic twilight, occultist, prophet, Nobel laureate, mad as a box of frogs, poetic genius. For a fuller and more nuanced account, see the marvellous biography by R F Foster (2 volumes, 1500 pages).
