Shelley was a revolutionary poet who was inspired by the ideals of the French Revolution and Romanticism. He dreamed of creating a new and ideal society without evil, suffering or injustice, ruled by reason, liberty and equality. Through his poetry, Shelley sought to spread these revolutionary ideas and ideals to the world in order to transform and renew society.

1. A Presentation By
Zenab Jehangir Khan

2. Shelley As A Revolutionary
Poet

3. Contents
French
Revolution
Romanticism
Shelley at War
With Existing
World
Constructive
Revolution
The Return of
Nature
Believer of an
Ideal World
Wanted to
Scatter His
Ideas

4. French Revolution
• Liberty
• Equality
• Fraternity
• Death

5. Romanticism
• Return to Nature
• Return to Supernatural
• Anti Materialism
• Escapism
• Spontaniety of Poetry
• Ideal of Liberty and Individualism

6. Romanticism
• “For the Romantic poet, the idea of revolution
has a special interest, and a special affinity.
For Romanticism seeks to effect in poetry
what revolution aspires to achieve in politics:
innovation, transformation, defamiliarisation"
(David Duff)

7. Shelley at War with Existing World
• He dreamt of a new society
• He was a dreamer of dreams
• He led a ceaseless war against
the existing political, social
and economic institutions

8. The wingèd seeds, where they lie cold and low,
Each like a corpse within its grave, until
Thine azure sister of the Spring shall blow
Her clarion o'er the dreaming earth, and fill
(Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air)
With living hues and odours plain and hill;
- “Ode to The West Wind”
(L. 6-12)

9. ...thou wouldst free
This world from its dark slavery,
That thou—O awful LOVELINESS,
Wouldst give whate’er these words cannot
express.
- “Hymn to Intellectual Beauty”
(L. 69-72)

10. Constructive Revolution
• He wanted to kindle enthusiasm for
liberty and justice
• Faith and hope in something good
The trumpet of a prophecy! O Wind,
If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?
- “Ode to The West Wind”
(L. 69-70)

11. Peace, peace! he is not dead, he doth not
sleep
He hath awakened from the dream of life
'Tis we, who lost in stormy visions, keep
With phantoms an unprofitable strife,
And in mad trance, strike with our spirit's
knife
Invulnerable nothings. — We decay
Like corpses in a charnel; fear and grief
Convulse us and consume us day by day,
And cold hopes swarm like worms within our
living clay.
- “Adonais” (L. 343- 351)

12. The Return of Nature
• Essential happiness of life is in simple life
Let me go back to the breast of Mother Earth
where my own hands can win my own bread
from woods and fields.
- CSSForum.com

13. Than thou, O uncontrollable! if even
I were as in my boyhood, and could be
The comrade of thy wanderings over heaven,
As then, when to outstrip thy skiey speed
Scarce seem'd a vision—I would ne'er have
striven
As thus with thee in prayer in my sore need.
- “Ode to The West Wind”
(L. 47-52)

14. Believer of an Ideal World
• World without evil, suffering, and misery
• Rule of reason
• Bright future of humanity

15. ...Thou dirge
Of the dying year, to which this closing night
Will be the dome of a vast sepulchre,
Vaulted with all thy congregated might
Of vapours, from whose solid atmosphere
Black rain, and fire, and hail, will burst: O
hear!
- “Ode to The West Wind”
(L. 23-28)

16. Wanted to Scatter His Ideas
• He wanted t raise and enliven his spirit out of
the depths of desolation, dejection and
weariness
• Scatter his thoughts among the universe

17. Drive my dead thoughts over the universe
Like withered leaves to quicken a new birth!
And, by the incantation of his verse,
Scatter, as form an unextinguished hearth
Ashes and sparks, my words among mankind!
- “Ode to The West Wind”
(L. 63-67)

18. Teach me half the gladness
That thy brain must know,
Such harmonious madness
From my lips would flow
The world should listen then – as I am
listening now.
- “Ode to A Skylark”
(L. 101-105)

19. • Cazamian said:
“Shelley belongs to that rare species of
mankind whom reason and feeling convert
revolutionaries in the flush of youth an who
remain so for the rest of their life.”