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Yeats's Poetry

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  • 06-06-2016 10:31am
    #1
    user53
    Closed Accounts Posts: 97 ✭✭


    Does anyone know how to approach a Yeats question titled 'Consider Yeats a poet of conflict'?
    Does this mean actual conflict or contrast within his poetry?

    Also is it Yeats's, Yeats' or just Yeats? :p


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    #2
    spurious
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Education Moderators Posts: 27,120 CMod ✭✭✭✭spurious


    As written, that title could mean either a poet who wrote about conflict, or a poet who was conflicted in his poetry. You could answer it either way.

    William Butler Yeats.
    Yeats was a poet.
    Yeats' poetry.


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    #3
    user53
    Closed Accounts Posts: 97 ✭✭user53


    Thank you :)


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    #4
    CreepyOnion
    Registered Users Posts: 27 ✭CreepyOnion


    spurious wrote: »
    As written, that title could mean either a poet who wrote about conflict, or a poet who was conflicted in his poetry. You could answer it either way.

    William Butler Yeats.
    Yeats was a poet.
    Yeats' poetry.

    It's actually Yeats's poetry.


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    #5
    TSMGUY
    Closed Accounts Posts: 855 ✭✭✭TSMGUY


    CreepyOnion wrote: »
    It's actually Yeats's poetry.
    mate, you have to get 575 points and you're concerning yourself with such minutiae! Get off boards and study so you don't have to repeat next year!


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    #6
    CreepyOnion
    Registered Users Posts: 27 ✭CreepyOnion


    TSMGUY wrote: »
    mate, you have to get 575 points and you're concerning yourself with such minutiae! Get off boards and study so you don't have to repeat next year!

    Haha, just said it because OP asked :)


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    #7
    user53
    Closed Accounts Posts: 97 ✭✭user53


    CreepyOnion wrote: »
    It's actually Yeats's poetry.
    Thank you :)


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    #8
    spurious
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Education Moderators Posts: 27,120 CMod ✭✭✭✭spurious


    Why does it not follow the rules of English?
    Is it a Stephens's day kind of thing?


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    #9
    CreepyOnion
    Registered Users Posts: 27 ✭CreepyOnion


    spurious wrote: »
    Why does it not follow the rules of English?
    Is it a Stephens's day kind of thing?

    The apostrophe after an s is for plurals. There's only one Stephen, I think :P


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    #10
    spurious
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Education Moderators Posts: 27,120 CMod ✭✭✭✭spurious


    But James' Street?
    Dr. Steevens' hospital?
    St. Thomas' Hospital Trust?

    Not trying to be picky. Perhaps I should ask this in the English forum.


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    #11
    CreepyOnion
    Registered Users Posts: 27 ✭CreepyOnion


    spurious wrote: »
    But James' Street?
    Dr. Steevens' hospital?
    St. Thomas' Hospital Trust?

    Not trying to be picky. Perhaps I should ask this in the English forum.

    Please do. If you're right then my English teacher has some explaining to do...


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    #12
    spurious
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Education Moderators Posts: 27,120 CMod ✭✭✭✭spurious


    I was under the impression that (for example) James' Street was correct, but James's Street had become recently acceptable.

    To see 'Yeats's poetry' written in academic sites looks very odd to a child of a 1970's education. I shall ask the experts.


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    #13
    CreepyOnion
    Registered Users Posts: 27 ✭CreepyOnion


    spurious wrote: »
    I was under the impression that (for example) James' Street was correct, but James's Street had become recently acceptable.

    To see 'Yeats's poetry' written in academic sites looks very odd to a child of a 1970's education. I shall ask the experts.

    Watch Yeats NOT come up now.


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    #14
    spurious
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Education Moderators Posts: 27,120 CMod ✭✭✭✭spurious


    CreepyOnion wrote: »
    Watch Yeats NOT come up now.

    If I were a betting sort...1916 anniversary? Methinks Willie would be definitely worth a punt.

    That said, I am not (nor ever have been) an English teacher and am speculating wildly.


    On the Yeats' or Yeats's question - it seems it is entirely a stylistic thing. Both are correct today. Whichever one you choose stick to it. I didn't start a thread on it in the English forum as there was already one on James' or James's.

    Dickens is another one. US sites seem to write about 'Dickens's writing' while British based sites write of 'Dickens' writing'.


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    #15
    TSMGUY
    Closed Accounts Posts: 855 ✭✭✭TSMGUY


    CreepyOnion wrote: »
    Watch Yeats NOT come up now.

    "a terrible beauty is born...."


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    #16
    Peregrine
    Moderators, Education Moderators Posts: 26,399 Mod ✭✭✭✭Peregrine


    spurious wrote: »
    But James' Street?
    Dr. Steevens' hospital?
    St. Thomas' Hospital Trust?

    Not trying to be picky. Perhaps I should ask this in the English forum.

    That's a matter of preference these days.

    But regular plural possessive nouns still always end in an apostrophe.

    Edit: Oops, too slow.


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    #17
    TrashyTrackman
    Registered Users Posts: 16 ✭TrashyTrackman


    Either is correct. It's how you would say Jesus' coat instead of Jesus's coat. Though you won't be wrong staying either, the latter is quite different to say.
    Want to make it more confusing add multiple Jesus's, "The Jesus's's coats..."


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    #18
    daraghwal
    Registered Users Posts: 945 ✭✭✭daraghwal


    The chief examiner wrote Yeats's in the 2010 Question anyway! :O


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    #19
    nermal15
    Registered Users Posts: 324 ✭✭nermal15


    I was taught in college that you can use either Yeats' or Yeats's, they're both acceptable. As long as there is an apostrophe in there somewhere...my students seem to think they're an optional extra.


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    #20
    sheep?
    Closed Accounts Posts: 824 ✭✭✭sheep?


    I've been told that both s' and s's are acceptable, but that s's is more common. That's up for debate, but whichever one you chose, just be consistent in your use.

    And the very best of luck!


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