In compiling his
Collected Poems 1909-1935(1936), T. S. Eliot grouped four of his shorter poems in a distinct section headed “Ariel Poems”; this group was later enlarged to five poems in the
Collected Poems 1909-1962(1963). The name comes from that of the series in which each had been independently published: the “Ariel Poems”, published by the London firm of Faber & Gwyer (renamed Faber & Faber from 1929), of which Eliot was a director. The first thirty-eight Ariel Poems by several leading poets of the time had appeared between 1927 and 1931 as small four-page illustrated pamphlets that could be used as superior greetings cards, for Christmas or otherwise, or simply retained as collectors’ items by bibliophiles. Eliot’s contributions to that initial Ariel Poems series were
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Citation: Baker, William. "Ariel Poems". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 20 April 2021 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=40471, accessed 13 December 2024.]