Early Twentieth Century
Welsh writing in English is generally seen as beginning in the twentieth century, following the decline of the Welsh language. A memorable twentieth-century poet who initially wrote in Welsh was Idris Davies (1905–53). But "rebellion against chapel religion", along with the "inspirational influence of English" poets, led him to write in English (Gwalia Deserta (1938); The Angry Summer (1943)).
A major Welsh poet is Swansea's Dylan Thomas (1914–53) whose first collection, 18 Poems, was published in 1934. His most celebrated work, including Under Milk Wood (first broadcast in 1954), was published after the Second World War. While David Jones (1895–1974) was born in a London suburb, his father was from North Wales. Jones' epic poem In Parenthesis, which deals with his experience of World War I, was published in 1937, though he too belongs more to the post-war era, as does another Swansea poet Vernon Watkins (1906–67).
Read more about this topic: Anglo-Welsh Poetry
Famous quotes containing the words twentieth century, early, twentieth and/or century:
“The phenomenon of nature is more splendid than the daily events of nature, certainly, so then the twentieth century is splendid.”
—Gertrude Stein (1874–1946)
““next to of course god america i
love you land of the pilgrims” and so forth oh
say can you see by the dawn’s early my
country ‘tis of centuries come and go
and are no more what of it we should worry
in every language even deafanddumb
thy sons acclaim your glorious name by gorry
by jing by gee by gosh by gum”
—E.E. (Edward Estlin)
“Doubt, it seems to me, is the central condition of a human being in the twentieth century.”
—Salman Rushdie (b. 1947)
“Speech is the mirror of the soul.”
—Publilius Syrus (1st century B.C.)