The fame of the Irish novelist and poet James Stephens (1882-1950) rests almost entirely upon a single masterpiece, the novel The Crock of Gold. Joyce suggested that Stephens complete Finnegans Wake if Joyce was unable to do so; this proposal made more formally during 1929. Received a commission from The Nation (London) to write a series of short stories. 1912 Poems In the Poppy Field, In the Cool of the Evening, The Lonely God all from The Hill of Vision are included by Edward Marsh in his collection Georgian Poetry. and Employed by Reddington & Sainsbury, solicitors. 1918-24 Appointed Registrar of the National Gallery of Ireland Privacy Policy. 1919 Married "Cynthia" (then a widow) in London on 14 May. March 2016: Traditional Irish Fairy Tales by James Stephens & Arthur Rackham, April 2016- Easter 1916 by Charles Townshend. 1882 (2 February). He was largely self-educated and was working in a solicitor's office when the poet George Russell (known as AE) discovered him. He was a close friend of the 1916 leader Thomas MacDonagh, who was then editor of "The Irish Review", manager of the Irish Theatre and deputy headmaster in St Enda's, the radical bilingual Montessori school run by PH Pearse, and spent most with MacDonagh in 1911. 1945 Returned to London. 1901 Part of a gymnastic team which won the Irish Shield. 1930 Theme and Variations. In Romania; met Queen Marie. Acted in the Theatre of Ireland's two productions of Seumas O'Kelly's The Shuiler's Child. collection of short stories, exhibits the same genius for language and love of Irish lore as was found in his popular collection Irish Fairy Tales (1920). Kings and the Moon (1938). James Stephens was an Irish novelist and poet. In physical appearance he resembled a leprechaun, less than 5 feet in height, with a droll face and dark complexion, a prototype of the comic Irishman. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. Elected Unestablished Registrar of the National Gallery of Ireland. 1912 The Charwoman's Daughter, The Hill of Vision, Crock of Gold. Error rating book. His masterpiece, The Crock of Gold (1912), a modern fable, employs leprechauns and spirits in a half-concealed burlesque of Irish philosophy that derides the imprisonment of the human intellect by doctors, lawyers, priests, professors, and merchants; at the same time, it presents a humorous commentary on the Irish battle of the sexes. Deirdre His growing nationalism brought a schism with his adopted family. 1915 Poems The Rivals, The Goatpaths, The Snare, In Woods and Meadows, Deirdre all from Songs from the Clay are included by Edward Marsh in his collection Georgian Poetry. 1926 Collected Poems. Encyclopedia of World Biography. Etched in Moonlight James Stephens was an Irish novelist and poet. 1925 A Poetry Recital, Danny Murphy, Christmas in Freelands. Moved to Paris. His first book of poems, "Insurrections," was published during 1909. 1932 Visit to America; stay with Howe. By the early 1900s James was increasingly inclined to socialism and the Irish language (he could speak and write Irish) and by 1912 was a dedicated Irish Republican. James' mother worked in the home of the Collins family of Dublin and was adopted by them. Stephens, James Poet's Biography 178 poems available by this author. 1917 Poems The Fifteen Acres, Check, Westland Row, The Turn of the Road, A Visit from Abroad all from The Adventures of Seumas Beg are included by Edward Marsh in his collection Georgian Poetry. He was much enthralled by tales of military valour of his adoptive family and would have been a soldier except for his height. The Charwoman's Daughter (1912) enjoyed great success in America under the title Mary, Mary. 1942 Awarded British Civil List Pension. James Stephens was born on February 2, 1882 in Dublin, Ireland, and died December 26, 1950, in London, England. People will see it as Author Name with your public flash cards. His minor works consist of humorous fiction based on Irish folklore and lyric poems. Poets.org Donate Donate. Refresh and try again. © Poems are the property of their respective owners. degree from Dublin University (Trinity College). By the early 1900s James was increasingly inclined to socialism and the Irish language (he could speak and write Irish) and by 1912 was a dedicated Irish Republican. He attended school with his adopted brothers Thomas and Richard (Tom and Dick) before graduating as a solicitor's clerk. "Crock of Gold," in particular, achieved enduring popularity and was reprinted frequently throughout the author's lifetime. 1886-96 Attended Meath Protestant Industrial School for Boys. 1950 Final BBC broadcast. Until his death on Dec. 26, 1950, he was assistant curator of the Dublin National Gallery. Deirdre presented the medal for fiction at the Aonach Tailteann festival. 1880 (9 February). During the 1930s, Stephens had some acquaintance with James Joyce, who found that they shared a birth year (and, Joyce mistakenly believed, a birthday). He made his debut as a successful broadcaster for the BBC in 1928 with a personal reminiscence of John 1913 Here Are Ladies, Five New Poems. 1906 Employed as a clerk-typist in the office of T. T.Mecredy & Son, solicitors. 1915 Songs from the Clay, The Adventures of Seumas Beg/The Rocky Road to Dublin. This page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia James Stephens; 1916 Green Branches, The Insurrection in Dublin. 1929 Julia Elizabeth: A Comedy, in one act, The Optimist, The Outcast. Stephens began his career as a poet with the tutelage of "Æ" (George William Russell). Birth of stepdaughter, Iris, on 14 June; soon thereafter announced that he had a wife, "Cynthia" (Millicent Josephine Gardiner Kavanagh, 22 May 1882-18 December 1960). You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the CC-BY-SA. One of a series of operations for gastric ulcers. See if your friends have read any of James Stephens's books. Discovered by George W. Russell (Æ). 1927 Friendship with James Joyce commenced. He attended school with his adopted brothers Thomas and Richard (Tom and Dick) before graduating as a solicitor's clerk. “Curiosity will conquer fear more than bravery will.”, “Let the past be content with itself, for man needs forgetfulness as well as memory”, “Originality does not consist in saying what no one has ever said before, but in saying exactly what you think yourself.”, James Stephens was an Irish novelist and poet. Lecturer at the Third International Book Fair in Florence. James Brunton Stephens (17 June 1835 – 29 June 1902) was a Scottish-born Australian poet, and author of Convict Once. 1924 Little Things, In the Land of Youth. His minor works consist of humorous fiction based on Irish folklore and lyric poems. Visit to America; stay with Howe. This work won the Polignac Prize for fiction in 1912. A founder member of the Irish Academy of Letters. Bramsbeack, Birgit, James Stephens: a literary and bibliographical study, Philadelphia: R. West, 1977. Poets. Yes, I'd like to receive Word of the Day emails from YourDictionary.com. First BBC broadcast. His third novel, Deirdre (1923), won the Tailteann Gold Medal for fiction in 1923. Birth of son, James Naoise, on 26 October. His retellings are marked by a rare combination of humor and lyricism (Deirdre, and Irish Fairy Tales are often especially praise). Joyce, who was concerned with his ability to finish what later became Finnegans Wake, proposed that Stephens assist him, with the authorship credited to JJ & S (James Joyce & Stephens, also a pun for the popular Irish whiskey made by John Jameson & Sons). 1910 Acted in the Theatre of Ireland production of Gerald h Macnamara's The SPurious Sovereign. James Stephens was an Irish novelist and poet. Demi-Gods 1940 Moved to Woodside Chapel in Gloucestershire. 1928 Etched in Moonlight, On Prose and Verse. Millington Synge. Although he disassociated himself from Irish neutrality during the 1940s, declaring himself "an Irishman who wished to elect himself an Englishman for the duration," he was honored for his service to the cause of Irish independence and was active in the Sinn Fein movement from its beginnings. He was known affectionately as 'Tiny Tim'. Visit to America; stay with W. T. H. Howe. He also wrote several original novels (Crock of Gold, Etched in Moonlight, Demi-Gods) based loosely on Irish fairy tales. Search more than 3,000 biographies of contemporary and classic poets. 1933-35 Yearly lecture tours to America; visits with Howe. He was much enthralled by tales of military valour of his adoptive family and would have been a soldier except for his height. His retellings are marked by a rare combination of humor and lyricism (Deirdre, and Irish Fairy Tales are often especially praise). 1911 Acted in Pádraic Ó Conaire's Bairbre Ruadh. James Stephens: A Literary and Bibliographical Study, James Stephens: His Work and an Account of His Life. James Stephens produced many retellings of Irish myths and fairy tales. it is used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. James Stephens - - The Academy of American Poets is the largest membership-based nonprofit organization fostering an appreciation for contemporary poetry and supporting American poets. 1937 Began regular series of BBC broadcasts. He was known affectionately as 'Tiny Tim'. His last book, "Kings and the Moon" (1938), was also a volume of verse. His fables and tales are a blend of philosophy and nonsense, aimed at creating for Ireland "a new mythology to take the place of the threadbare mythology of Greece and Rome." The olympian & the leprechaun: W. B. Yeats and James Stephens. 1896 Employed as a clerk by a Dublin solicitor, Mr Wallace. During the last decade of his life, Stephens found a new audience through a series of broadcasts on the BBC. Finneran, Richard J., The olympian & the leprechaun: W. B. Yeats and James Stephens, Dublin: Dolmen Press; Atlantic Highlands, N.J.: distributed by Humanities Press, 1978. 1922 Arthur Griffith: journalist and Statesman. 1947 Awarded honorary D. Litt. By continuing, you agree to our The fame of the Irish novelist and poet James Stephens (1882-1950) rests almost entirely upon a single masterpiece, the novel The Crock of Gold. He attended school with his adopted brothers Thomas and Richard (Tom and Dick) before graduating as a solicitor's clerk. Visit to America; stay with Howe. Date of birth used by Stephens. 1931 How St. Patrick Saves the Irish, Stars Do Not Make a Noise,Strict Joy. In 1907 A.E. James Stephens was an Irish novelist and poet. The critical and biographical commentaries in Lloyd Frankenberg's edition of Stephens's unpublished writings, James, Seumas and Jacques (1964), and Frankenberg's A James Stephens Reader (1962) also provide much useful information. They competed and won several athletic competitions despite James' slight stature (he stood 4'10" in his socks). I didn't listen to him, For he didn't sing to me, James Stephens - James Stephens Biography - Poem Hunter. The Wooing of Julia Elizabeth (identical to The Marriage of Julia Elizabeth) produced at the Abbey Theatre by the Dublin Drama League.