Overview

Percy Shelley was a writer in the broadest sense – poet, pamphleteer, philosopher, translator, and correspondent – and one of the most eccentric, fascinating figures of his age. Yet he is emphatically of our age too, continuing to influence contemporary writers, to be referenced in popular culture, and to inspire social and political movements. Bringing together a wide range of contributors from different critical perspectives, this vivid and accessible volume sets Shelley's work in its many contexts – from ancient literature to contemporary poetry, from his travels around Britain and Europe to his global reception, and from his rivalries with his poetic peers to his often-strained relations with his family. Despite his short life, Shelley emerges as a vital literary presence.

Full Product Details

Author:   Ross Wilson (University of Cambridge)
Publisher:   Cambridge University Press
Imprint:   Cambridge University Press
ISBN:  

9781009223706

ISBN 10:   1009223704
Pages:   393
Publication Date:   24 April 2025
Audience:   General/trade ,  General
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
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Table of Contents

I. Life and Death: 1. Family and education Nora Crook; 2. Women and children Daisy Hay; 3. Great Britain and Ireland Timothy Heimlich; 4. Switzerland Patrick Vincent; 5. Italy Valentina Varinelli; 6. Death (as if) Jacques Khalip; Part II. Intellectual, Cultural, and Political Contexts: 7. Ancient philosophy Amanda Blake Davis; 8. Ancient poetry Tom Phillips; 9. English literature to 1792 Ross Wilson; 10. European literature, Dante to Rousseau Diego Saglia; 11. The visual and plastic arts Sophie Thomas; 12. The radical press Philip Connell; 13. Shelley and the lake poets: '-have I not kept the vow?' Eric Lindstrom; 14. Mary Shelley Anna Mercer; 15. Thomas Love Peacock Joseph Turner; 16. The cold worlds of Byron and Shelley Merrilees Roberts; 17. Keats and Shelley Anahid Nersessian; 18. Revolution and reform Brian McGrath; 19. Political economy Paul Stephens; 20. Empire Nahoko Miyamoto Alvey; 21. Shelley's sexless sexuality Kate Singer; 22. The British empiricists Chris Townsend; 23. The sciences Andrew Lacey; 24. Religion Colin Jager; Part III. Writings: 25. Publishing, publishers, and editions Michael Rossington; 26. Correspondence Will Bowers; 27. Shelley's translations Mathelinda Nabugodi; 28. The gothic Jerrold E. Hogle; 29. Lyric Alexander Freer; 30. Drama Julie Camarda; 31. Epic Yasmin Solomonescu; 32. Shelley's laughter Matthew Ward; Part IV. Afterlives: 33. Contemporary reviews Kim Wheatley; 34. Biographers, memoirists, reminiscers 1823–1878 Bysshe Inigo Coffey; 35. Global reception and translation Omar F. Miranda; 36. 'For the many, not the few': Shelley and politics from Chartism to socialism Casie LeGette; 37. The Victorians' Shelley Tom Mole; 38. Twentieth-century poetry Madeleine Callaghan; 39. Lyric trouble: Shelley and contemporary poetry John Wilkinson; 40. Shelley and popular culture Suzanne L. Barnett; 41. Shelley: palinode/divagation Maureen N. McLane.

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Author Information

Ross Wilson is Professor of the History and Theory of Criticism in the Faculty of English, University of Cambridge, and a fellow of Emmanuel College. He is the author of four books, including Critical Forms of Literary Criticism, 1750–2020 (2023) and Shelly and the Apprehension of Life (2013).

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