After spending 6 years as an undergraduate and post graduate reading and researching English at the University of Hull, I moved to Italy (Rome) and taught at the University of Rome ("La Sapienza") for about 38 years. I retired in 2016.My current interests are mainly but not only historical/genealogical and I publish privately. Address: Italy
This short essay on Symons' poem was published in a volume of papers editied by Agostino Lombardo... more This short essay on Symons' poem was published in a volume of papers editied by Agostino Lombardo, "Gioco di Specchi, Saggi sull'oso letterario dell'immagine dello specchio", Rome (1999). It discusses the importance of the dance theme in later 19th century poetry and in particular how Symons uses it and the image of the dancer in the mirror to create an art lyric in which the moment of tension between what is real and what is only perceived is heightened by the ephemeral nature of the spectacle.
The paper was published in a collection of essays dedicated to novels about actors (2005). It sho... more The paper was published in a collection of essays dedicated to novels about actors (2005). It shows how the novel is the culmination of Firbank's interest in the theatre as a subject for fiction and how he uses it to subvert 'normal' notions of morality and plot.
The paper, delivered in 1992 at a Keats-Shelley House conference in Rome for Shelley's bicentenar... more The paper, delivered in 1992 at a Keats-Shelley House conference in Rome for Shelley's bicentenary, suggests that "Adonais" is the third of the poets great theatrical works about Rome, after "Prometheus Unbound" and "The Cenci". Whereas those works were influenced by the spirit of the place of classical and medieval Rome, Shelley's elegy on Keats was deeply influenced by and is a tribute to baroque Rome. It is put into the artistic and literary context of the Baroque and the theatricality of the genre and the city.
This brief note traces Swinburne's poetry about the sea from his early poems to his mature work, ... more This brief note traces Swinburne's poetry about the sea from his early poems to his mature work, and especially "On the Cliffs". The sea is, like his poetry, a medium for someone "out of step" on land and in ordinary society. It is the most constant and coherent image of his verse.
Algernon Charles Swinburne's late "closet drama", "The Sisters" (1892) was a partial homage to Lo... more Algernon Charles Swinburne's late "closet drama", "The Sisters" (1892) was a partial homage to Lord Tennyson. This short note gives an account of the genesis of the work and Tennyson's negative comments, as recorded in his own copy of the play.
This note in "Notes and Queries", March 2005, identifies one of the friends Wilde made in Prison ... more This note in "Notes and Queries", March 2005, identifies one of the friends Wilde made in Prison and provides some of his background. It suggests this topic as a fruitful further line of research.
This short essay on Symons' poem was published in a volume of papers editied by Agostino Lombardo... more This short essay on Symons' poem was published in a volume of papers editied by Agostino Lombardo, "Gioco di Specchi, Saggi sull'oso letterario dell'immagine dello specchio", Rome (1999). It discusses the importance of the dance theme in later 19th century poetry and in particular how Symons uses it and the image of the dancer in the mirror to create an art lyric in which the moment of tension between what is real and what is only perceived is heightened by the ephemeral nature of the spectacle.
The paper was published in a collection of essays dedicated to novels about actors (2005). It sho... more The paper was published in a collection of essays dedicated to novels about actors (2005). It shows how the novel is the culmination of Firbank's interest in the theatre as a subject for fiction and how he uses it to subvert 'normal' notions of morality and plot.
The paper, delivered in 1992 at a Keats-Shelley House conference in Rome for Shelley's bicentenar... more The paper, delivered in 1992 at a Keats-Shelley House conference in Rome for Shelley's bicentenary, suggests that "Adonais" is the third of the poets great theatrical works about Rome, after "Prometheus Unbound" and "The Cenci". Whereas those works were influenced by the spirit of the place of classical and medieval Rome, Shelley's elegy on Keats was deeply influenced by and is a tribute to baroque Rome. It is put into the artistic and literary context of the Baroque and the theatricality of the genre and the city.
This brief note traces Swinburne's poetry about the sea from his early poems to his mature work, ... more This brief note traces Swinburne's poetry about the sea from his early poems to his mature work, and especially "On the Cliffs". The sea is, like his poetry, a medium for someone "out of step" on land and in ordinary society. It is the most constant and coherent image of his verse.
Algernon Charles Swinburne's late "closet drama", "The Sisters" (1892) was a partial homage to Lo... more Algernon Charles Swinburne's late "closet drama", "The Sisters" (1892) was a partial homage to Lord Tennyson. This short note gives an account of the genesis of the work and Tennyson's negative comments, as recorded in his own copy of the play.
This note in "Notes and Queries", March 2005, identifies one of the friends Wilde made in Prison ... more This note in "Notes and Queries", March 2005, identifies one of the friends Wilde made in Prison and provides some of his background. It suggests this topic as a fruitful further line of research.
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Papers by Stephen Clifford Wilson
It discusses the importance of the dance theme in later 19th century poetry and in particular how Symons uses it and the image of the dancer in the mirror to create an art lyric in which the moment of tension between what is real and what is only perceived is heightened by the ephemeral nature of the spectacle.
It discusses the importance of the dance theme in later 19th century poetry and in particular how Symons uses it and the image of the dancer in the mirror to create an art lyric in which the moment of tension between what is real and what is only perceived is heightened by the ephemeral nature of the spectacle.