Percy Bysshe Shelley
Radical idealist who believed poetry could remake the world.
Biography
Shelley was expelled from Oxford for writing The Necessity of Atheism, a pamphlet co-authored with Thomas Jefferson Hogg. He spent the rest of his short life moving between England, Scotland and Italy, publishing essays, pamphlets and long poems.
He died at twenty-nine, drowned in a storm while sailing near Livorno. His body was found weeks later and cremated on the beach. Mary Shelley, his widow, edited and promoted his work for decades after his death.
Writing Style
- Blank verse and heroic couplets used for long political arguments.
- Sustained metaphor that expands across hundreds of lines.
- A belief that nature is the only reliable teacher of ethics and politics.
- Combines philosophical prose rhythms with lyric intensity.
Influence & Legacy
The intellectual ancestor of every poet who believes art has a political duty. His argument that 'poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world' has been quoted by everyone from Auden to Barack Obama.
Famous Poems
Other England Poets
About This Entry
This is a brief, opinionated introduction to Percy Bysshe Shelley — not a comprehensive biography. For detailed scholarship, consult the volumes listed in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography or the relevant collections of letters and criticism. The goal here is to give you enough context to read the poems with fresh eyes.