William Ernest Henley was born on 23 August 1849 in Gloucester, England, and died on 11 July 1903 at Woking, Surrey. He occupies an unusual place in English literary history: widely remembered by the public for a single short poem, “Invictus,” yet far more consequential in his own age as a poet, editor, critic, journalist, dramatist, and formidable presence in literary society. Henley’s life was shaped by physical pa…
“Shakespeare and Rembrandt have in common the faculty of quickening speculation and compelling the minds of men to combat and discussion.”
Neighbourhood:
Confessional Poets, Death & Mortality, Victorian Poets
Emotional landscape: Sorrow, Despair, Longing
Charles Kingsley was born on 12 June 1819 at Holne, a village on the edge of Dartmoor in Devon, into a family whose circumstances, movements, religious commitments, and imaginative habits all helped to shape his career. He became one of the most conspicuous Victorian public intellectuals: an Anglican clergyman, novelist, poet, historian, lecturer, social reformer, controversialist, and writer for children. In his own…
“The more I know, the more I forgive.”
Neighbourhood:
Children's Verse, Nature Poets, Social Justice Poets, Victorian Poets
Emotional landscape: Longing, Sorrow, Despair
