Part of the Shelly's Ghost Exhibition. Shelley's best-known poem was written in Florence in late 1819.
Percy Bysshe Shelley - Fair copy of Ode to the West Wind
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Technically it is a series of four sonnets written in 'terza rima', the verse-form Shelley would use again, with similar fluency, in his final poem, The Triumph of Life. The west wind is an agent of change: with seasonal rejuvenation comes a personal rebirth which will, in turn, inspire the 'unawakened Earth'.
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Few families enjoy such a remarkable reputation for their contribution to the literature and intellectual life of Britain as the Godwins and the Shelleys. The Bodleian online exhibition 'Shelley's Ghost: Reshaping the Image of a Literary Family' explores how the reputation of this great literary family was shaped by the selective release of documents and manuscripts into the public domain. It also provides a fascinating insight into the real lives of a family that was blessed...
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