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William Butler Yeats

William Butler Yeats (1865–1939), born in Dublin, is among the best-known poets of the twentieth century. His first book, The Wanderings of Oisin and Other Poems, was published in 1889; his other books include In the Seven Woods, Responsibilities and Other Poems, The Wild Swans at Coole, The Tower, and The Winding Stair and Other Poems. He was also a prolific playwright. In 1923, he won the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Leda and the Swan

A sudden blow: the great wings beating still Above the staggering girl, her thighs caressed By the dark webs, her nape caught in his bill, He holds her helpless breast upon his breast. How can those terrified vague fingers push…