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The Land of Heart's Desire: Manuscript Materials
From reviews of The Cornell Yeats "For students of Yeats the whole series is bound to become an essential reference source and a stimulus to important critical re-readings of Yeats's major works. In a wider context, the series will also provide an extraordinary and perhaps unique insight into the creative process of a great artists."―Irish Literary Supplement "I consider the Cornell Yeats one of the most important scholarly projects of our time."―A. Walton Litz, Princeton University, coeditor of The Collected Poems of William Carols Williams and The Shorter Poems of Ezra Pound "The most ambitious of the many important projects in current studies of Yeats and perhaps of modern poetry generally.... The list of both general and series editors, as well as prospective preparers of individual volumes, reads like a Who's Who of Yeats textual studies in North America. Further, the project carries the blessing of Yeats's heirs and bespeaks an ongoing commitment from a major university press.... The series will inevitably engender critical studies based on a more solid footing than those of any other modern poet.... Its volumes will be consulted long after gyres of currently fashionable theory have run on."―Yeats Annual (1983) The Land of Heart's Desire, staged at the Avenue Theatre in London in 1894, marks W. B. Yeats's first use of Irish folklore in a play produced in the commercial theater, with important consequences for his career as a dramatist. This book includes transcriptions and photographs of the surviving holograph manuscripts of the play, reproductions of Yeats's own notes and revisions, and other materials related to stage productions and the resulting changes he made to the text. After Maud Gonne refused his offer of marriage in the summer of 1893, Yeats coped with his disappointment by burying himself in work. He composed a number of poems based on Irish folklore that would not see publication until 1899 and took steps to shape a literary renaissance in Ireland. In many of the pieces he wrote at this time, he developed the idea, sustained and refined throughout his life, that folklore was the foundation of a living mythology.
312 pages, Hardcover
First published March 29, 1894
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401 people want to read
About the author
W.B. Yeats
2,039 books2,575 followersWilliam Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and dramatist, and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. A pillar of both the Irish and British literary establishments, in his later years Yeats served as an Irish Senator for two terms. He was a driving force behind the Irish Literary Revival, and along with Lady Gregory and Edward Martyn founded the Abbey Theatre, serving as its chief during its early years. In 1923 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for what the Nobel Committee described as "inspired poetry, which in a highly artistic form gives expression to the spirit of a whole nation." He was the first Irishman so honored. Yeats is generally considered one of the few writers who completed their greatest works after being awarded the Nobel Prize; such works include The Tower (1928) and The Winding Stair and Other Poems (1929).
Yeats was born and educated in Dublin but spent his childhood in County Sligo. He studied poetry in his youth, and from an early age was fascinated by both Irish legends and the occult. Those topics feature in the first phase of his work, which lasted roughly until the turn of the century. His earliest volume of verse was published in 1889, and those slow paced and lyrical poems display debts to Edmund Spenser and Percy Bysshe Shelley, as well as to the Pre-Raphaelite poets. From 1900, Yeats' poetry grew more physical and realistic. He largely renounced the transcendental beliefs of his youth, though he remained preoccupied with physical and spiritual masks, as well as with cyclical theories of life.
--from Wikipedia
Yeats was born and educated in Dublin but spent his childhood in County Sligo. He studied poetry in his youth, and from an early age was fascinated by both Irish legends and the occult. Those topics feature in the first phase of his work, which lasted roughly until the turn of the century. His earliest volume of verse was published in 1889, and those slow paced and lyrical poems display debts to Edmund Spenser and Percy Bysshe Shelley, as well as to the Pre-Raphaelite poets. From 1900, Yeats' poetry grew more physical and realistic. He largely renounced the transcendental beliefs of his youth, though he remained preoccupied with physical and spiritual masks, as well as with cyclical theories of life.
--from Wikipedia
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
December 6, 2019
“I have spread my dreams under your feet.
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.”
― W.B. Yeats
Yeats was a major proponent of symbolism. He has a riveting art of using common words and language to reach to those abstract ideas. His imagery and his spell can always give you a feel of sorcery. He himself was quite fond of paranormal things and those ideas out there. I had a wish to read some Irish folklores and who other than Yeats could have quenched my thirst.I read this short play during lunchtime and then I noticed how effective I was in the first hour after lunch! It was a gripping read. short but utterly impressive!
There is an Irish legend (though I was not aware of it before reading this play) that if a newlywed bride, on May Eve, is tempted to give fire and milk, asked by fairies, she will be stolen away. This play is based on this legend.
In the scene, there is a room with a hearth on the floor in the middle of a deep alcove to the Right. There are benches in the alcove and a table; and a crucifix on the wall. Through the door, one can see the forest. It is night, but the moon or a late sunset glimmer through the trees and carries the eye far off into a vague, mysterious World. MAURTEEN, SHAWN, and BRIDGET sit in the alcove
at the table or about the fire. They are dressed in the costume of some remote time, and near them sits an old priest, FATHER HART. He may be dressed as a friar. There are food and drink upon the table. MARY (Newlywed bride) stands by the door reading a book. If she looks up she can see through the door into the wood.
When hearing a song, they open the door and find a child, very much human-like. They pet her and play with her, and then with such innocently the child makes the priest powerless and terrorizes them and takes away the bride Mary. This is the place, where the art of Yeats's poetic beauty can be sensed in its nailing style. Everything is written so transcendently.
While alluring the newlywed, says the Child ...
But I can lead you, newly-married bride,
Where nobody gets old and crafty and wise,
Where nobody gets old and godly and grave,
Where nobody gets old and bitter of tongue,
And where kind tongues bring no captivity;
For we are but obedient to the thoughts
That drift into the mind at a wink of the eye
And in the last, when the purpose of the child is fulfilled and the bride is lured away. Dancing figures outside with many voices sing...
The wind blows out of the gates of the day,
The wind blows over the lonely of heart,
And the lonely of heart is withered away;
While the faeries dance in a place apart,
Shaking their milk-white feet in a ring,
Tossing their milk-white arms in the air;
For they hear the wind laugh and murmur and sing
Of a land where even the old are fair,
And even the wise are merry of tongue;
But I heard a reed of Coolaney say--
When the wind has laughed and murmured and sung,
The lonely of heart is withered away"
This is such an engrossing play of dream and hope.
This was also the first publicly performed play of Yeats.
I really enjoyed it!
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.”
― W.B. Yeats
Yeats was a major proponent of symbolism. He has a riveting art of using common words and language to reach to those abstract ideas. His imagery and his spell can always give you a feel of sorcery. He himself was quite fond of paranormal things and those ideas out there. I had a wish to read some Irish folklores and who other than Yeats could have quenched my thirst.I read this short play during lunchtime and then I noticed how effective I was in the first hour after lunch! It was a gripping read. short but utterly impressive!
There is an Irish legend (though I was not aware of it before reading this play) that if a newlywed bride, on May Eve, is tempted to give fire and milk, asked by fairies, she will be stolen away. This play is based on this legend.
In the scene, there is a room with a hearth on the floor in the middle of a deep alcove to the Right. There are benches in the alcove and a table; and a crucifix on the wall. Through the door, one can see the forest. It is night, but the moon or a late sunset glimmer through the trees and carries the eye far off into a vague, mysterious World. MAURTEEN, SHAWN, and BRIDGET sit in the alcove
at the table or about the fire. They are dressed in the costume of some remote time, and near them sits an old priest, FATHER HART. He may be dressed as a friar. There are food and drink upon the table. MARY (Newlywed bride) stands by the door reading a book. If she looks up she can see through the door into the wood.
When hearing a song, they open the door and find a child, very much human-like. They pet her and play with her, and then with such innocently the child makes the priest powerless and terrorizes them and takes away the bride Mary. This is the place, where the art of Yeats's poetic beauty can be sensed in its nailing style. Everything is written so transcendently.
While alluring the newlywed, says the Child ...
But I can lead you, newly-married bride,
Where nobody gets old and crafty and wise,
Where nobody gets old and godly and grave,
Where nobody gets old and bitter of tongue,
And where kind tongues bring no captivity;
For we are but obedient to the thoughts
That drift into the mind at a wink of the eye
And in the last, when the purpose of the child is fulfilled and the bride is lured away. Dancing figures outside with many voices sing...
The wind blows out of the gates of the day,
The wind blows over the lonely of heart,
And the lonely of heart is withered away;
While the faeries dance in a place apart,
Shaking their milk-white feet in a ring,
Tossing their milk-white arms in the air;
For they hear the wind laugh and murmur and sing
Of a land where even the old are fair,
And even the wise are merry of tongue;
But I heard a reed of Coolaney say--
When the wind has laughed and murmured and sung,
The lonely of heart is withered away"
This is such an engrossing play of dream and hope.
This was also the first publicly performed play of Yeats.
I really enjoyed it!
January 15, 2018
The wind blows over the lonely of heart,
And the lonely of heart is withered away.
A story told in the middle of the night.
In a faraway land, in a remote time, a couple of newlyweds shared a house with the young man's parents.
On May Eve, a priest came to visit.
Dinner was served. Wine was poured. The woods were near.
Discussions begun. Discussions over the bride's detachment towards that piece of world they lived in.
The priest stood up. A tragic preaching was kindly given.
...I have seen some other girls
Restless and ill at ease, but years went by
And they grew like their neighbours and were glad
In minding children, working at the churn,
And gossiping of weddings and of wakes;
For life moves out of a red flare of dreams
Into a common light of common hours,
Until old age bring the red flare again.
There is no place for a bride that rejects Fate and Time and Change.
One word and the household's fury is unleashed.
She is not a fitting wife for any man.
The young husband tried to calm what could never be calm.
Words were hastily chosen to soothe what could never...
Would that the world were mine to give it you,
And not its quiet hearths alone, but even
All that bewilderment of light and freedom.
If you would have it.
On May Eve, an immortal child in ethereal clothes came into the house with an enticing proposal.
A relentless melody about the burdens of life.
The ephemeral nature of our existence.
The land of heart's desire.
Where beauty has no ebb, decay no flood,
But joy is wisdom, Time an endless song.
I kiss you and the world begins to fade.
Now, they are all wondering if the world will ever be enough.
Dec 25, 15
* Also on my blog.
March 11, 2021
This is a short, one-act play and fairytale by W.B. Yeats; the first of his plays to be performed professionally. It tells the tale of a household who have an encounter with a child of the fey and is a symbolic battle between Christian faith and supernatural forces older than Christianity.
While I don’t think anybody would hold this up as an example of Yeats’ work at its best, I enjoyed this one and actually wished it had been longer.
My next book: Crossways
While I don’t think anybody would hold this up as an example of Yeats’ work at its best, I enjoyed this one and actually wished it had been longer.
My next book: Crossways
June 25, 2016
Yeats sets the scene in the real world for a battle between faith and fancy. A mother, her newlywed son and a priest, practice superstitious rituals to ward off evil, while the new daughter-in-law disappears into flights of fancy of fancy in her reading and her desire for more beyond the world she knows. A clash of worlds and wants and a warning to be careful what you wish for.
July 22, 2021
Maybe it is because I am a woman, I see a more feminist twist to the play. Everyone expects Maire to be a wife that helps around the house and has babies, while Maire dreams of another world where she is free from such expectations. The one thing holding her here is her love for Shawn, but even then, she has to go away, for she knows that as much as Shawn loves her and she loves him, he wouldn’t be able to give her what she wants.
I find the play pretty easy to read, with some lovely quotes about the wild nature and the carefree world that I too, want to escape to when I read the play. More of a 3.5 stars, really.
I find the play pretty easy to read, with some lovely quotes about the wild nature and the carefree world that I too, want to escape to when I read the play. More of a 3.5 stars, really.
November 19, 2018
I found The Land of Heart's Desire while searching for quotes about faeries (light-hearted research for a book) but I have no idea on how to rate a one-act playscript from the late 19th century. I enjoyed reading it, so four stars it is. All in all it was a lovely peep in to the Irish fairy-lore on the courtesy of the Gutenberg Project.
March 14, 2014
A passage from this book was quoted on an FB page, which made me curious to read it in context. I enjoyed reading the play and am now interested in reading more of his writings. Also, this was my first Kindle book for the Paperwhite device, with which I am well pleased.
October 9, 2016
A wonderful one act play that gives wonderful insight into how the Irish would look at the fairies during modernish times. He uses actual folklore from his interviews with the people of the Irish countryside's and creates a nice short scene in an Irish cottage.
April 14, 2014
I didn't quite know what to expect but ended with quiet tears and a heavy heart.
March 25, 2019
"When the wind has laughed and murmured and sung,
The lonely of heart is withered away."
~ The Irish Readathon 2019: Read a book that isn't a novel ★ ~
This short play was my first introducion into W.B. Yeats writing and I'm really excited to read more of his works now! I have no idea why it took me so long to discover him, given that I love folklore and mythology, but I'm happy I did.
I enjoyed the writing style and the folk elements. The main theme of the fight between fae and faith was interesting to see, and I'm intrigued after reading that the play was based on an actual legend. I will definitely be reading more of W.B. Yeats and pretty soon!
~~~
For more bookish goodies, check out my Tumblr, Instagram and Twitter :)
The lonely of heart is withered away."
~ The Irish Readathon 2019: Read a book that isn't a novel ★ ~
This short play was my first introducion into W.B. Yeats writing and I'm really excited to read more of his works now! I have no idea why it took me so long to discover him, given that I love folklore and mythology, but I'm happy I did.
I enjoyed the writing style and the folk elements. The main theme of the fight between fae and faith was interesting to see, and I'm intrigued after reading that the play was based on an actual legend. I will definitely be reading more of W.B. Yeats and pretty soon!
~~~
For more bookish goodies, check out my Tumblr, Instagram and Twitter :)
March 10, 2017
This is an ode to day dreamers.
The whole play got me thinking about all the escapades I have inside my head. I don't know what Yeats wanted to convey but, to my wandering mind this was a goldmine. An exquisite little read.
The whole play got me thinking about all the escapades I have inside my head. I don't know what Yeats wanted to convey but, to my wandering mind this was a goldmine. An exquisite little read.
July 27, 2021
"Faeries, come take me out of this world,
For I would ride with you upon the wind,
Run on the top of the disheveled tide,
And dance upon the mountains like a flame!"
Indeed a beautiful play it is.
For I would ride with you upon the wind,
Run on the top of the disheveled tide,
And dance upon the mountains like a flame!"
Indeed a beautiful play it is.
Read
July 27, 2025W.B. Yeats' , "The Land of Heart’s Desire" appeals to Jesus' teaching & is not a pæan to Celtic paganism & the faërie realm. It's a bit like C.S. Lewis' Narnia, in smuggling in Christain apologetic, under a more esoteric guise.
It is specifically, anti-clerical, anti-establishment, and anti-Catholic.
The faery child's behaviour mirrors key aspects of Christ's ministry that institutional Christianity has systematically suppressed:
Prioritising love over law - When the Child shows affection to those who welcome her whilst recoiling from religious symbols, this echoes Jesus' pattern of fellowship with tax collectors and sinners whilst condemning religious authorities.
Challenging institutional authority - The Child's ability to render Father Hart's ecclesiastical power ineffective mirrors Christ's consistent undermining of Temple authority and Pharisaic legalism.
Offering immediate spiritual experience - The Child promises direct access to joy and transcendence, bypassing institutional mediation - precisely what Jesus offered through direct relationship with the divine.
By framing his critique as Celtic mythology, Yeats could advocate for authentic Christian principles without directly challenging ecclesiastical authority. The "pagan" exterior provided protective cover for what amounts to a call for Christian reformation based on Jesus' original teachings.
The theological irony is exquisite: Yeats uses supposed paganism to argue for a more genuinely Christian spirituality than the Christianity of his time could offer. Father Hart represents exactly the kind of religious authority that Jesus consistently opposed - rule-bound, fear-based, and incapable of recognising authentic spiritual hunger.
It is specifically, anti-clerical, anti-establishment, and anti-Catholic.
The faery child's behaviour mirrors key aspects of Christ's ministry that institutional Christianity has systematically suppressed:
Prioritising love over law - When the Child shows affection to those who welcome her whilst recoiling from religious symbols, this echoes Jesus' pattern of fellowship with tax collectors and sinners whilst condemning religious authorities.
Challenging institutional authority - The Child's ability to render Father Hart's ecclesiastical power ineffective mirrors Christ's consistent undermining of Temple authority and Pharisaic legalism.
Offering immediate spiritual experience - The Child promises direct access to joy and transcendence, bypassing institutional mediation - precisely what Jesus offered through direct relationship with the divine.
By framing his critique as Celtic mythology, Yeats could advocate for authentic Christian principles without directly challenging ecclesiastical authority. The "pagan" exterior provided protective cover for what amounts to a call for Christian reformation based on Jesus' original teachings.
The theological irony is exquisite: Yeats uses supposed paganism to argue for a more genuinely Christian spirituality than the Christianity of his time could offer. Father Hart represents exactly the kind of religious authority that Jesus consistently opposed - rule-bound, fear-based, and incapable of recognising authentic spiritual hunger.
March 9, 2024
“𝘍𝘢𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴, 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥,
𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘶𝘱𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘥,
𝘙𝘶𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘪𝘥𝘦,
𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘶𝘱𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘧𝘭𝘢𝘮𝘦.”.
If you love traditional faeries based on folklore, this is a must-read!
Yeats already demonstrated his passion and love for traditional faerie lore in his Irish Folk and Fairy Tales collection he edited. In this play, he puts into practice the faerie superstitions, the popular Irish beliefs, in a serious manner, and the Celtic with Catholic opposition. If you would like to learn about faerie lore and superstitions, this is a good way to start, it tells you how to invoke them, and what was supposed not to do.
Now, the plot is very interesting as it has numerous readings. Maire recently married Shawn, they are both in love, but, it felt to me that despite Maire loving him, she is tired of fulfilling the traditional Catholic role of a wife... She yearns to be free, her heart desires to keep being the woman she was before being married, and she does not want the wife imposed duties, like doing the household, or serving her husband (remember those days when European women had to serve their husbands and were raised to be ladies...). And the opportunity seems to come, she remembers the old faerie traditions. Now this has several readings. The traditional Irish beliefs triumph over the forefinger and colonial beliefs, or, the woman liberates herself... It depends on you, reader!
I would love to see the play someday!
𝕭𝖔𝖔𝖐𝖘𝖙𝖆𝖌𝖗𝖆𝖒 ᛒᚠ @booksfromfaeries Instagram
𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘶𝘱𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘥,
𝘙𝘶𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘪𝘥𝘦,
𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘶𝘱𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘧𝘭𝘢𝘮𝘦.”.
If you love traditional faeries based on folklore, this is a must-read!
Yeats already demonstrated his passion and love for traditional faerie lore in his Irish Folk and Fairy Tales collection he edited. In this play, he puts into practice the faerie superstitions, the popular Irish beliefs, in a serious manner, and the Celtic with Catholic opposition. If you would like to learn about faerie lore and superstitions, this is a good way to start, it tells you how to invoke them, and what was supposed not to do.
Now, the plot is very interesting as it has numerous readings. Maire recently married Shawn, they are both in love, but, it felt to me that despite Maire loving him, she is tired of fulfilling the traditional Catholic role of a wife... She yearns to be free, her heart desires to keep being the woman she was before being married, and she does not want the wife imposed duties, like doing the household, or serving her husband (remember those days when European women had to serve their husbands and were raised to be ladies...). And the opportunity seems to come, she remembers the old faerie traditions. Now this has several readings. The traditional Irish beliefs triumph over the forefinger and colonial beliefs, or, the woman liberates herself... It depends on you, reader!
I would love to see the play someday!
𝕭𝖔𝖔𝖐𝖘𝖙𝖆𝖌𝖗𝖆𝖒 ᛒᚠ @booksfromfaeries Instagram
October 6, 2019
The Land of Heart's Desire
A short play by W.B. Yeats from the Irish legends and tales
It was interesting
Liked the ending
A short play by W.B. Yeats from the Irish legends and tales
It was interesting
Liked the ending
The wind blows over the lonely of heart,
And the lonely of heart is withered away.
July 15, 2024
I don't quiet agree with W.B. Yeats on his theme of indirectly glorifying the limitations and boundaries of Family Life and the conditioning of old customs and depicting the freedom and dance of "Faeries" as evil forces. The play is however beautifully written and is worth reading once.
June 2, 2020
Interesting verse drama on the dangers of Faery to a reader and dreamer
October 23, 2016
(More like 3'5 stars) I enjoyed it, but probably due to the fact that I'm still learning English, I found it a bit hard to understand at the beginning, even after I'd look up the definition of different words. I'd recommend it to native speakers, though.
June 20, 2010
Not some of William's best work...
February 20, 2011
Hard to think of a single work that I've quoted more often. It awakens the soul.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews