Denis Florence MacCarthy
Well-known Irish poet of the nineteenth century, born in Lower
O'Connell Street, Dublin, 26 May, 1817; died at Blackrock, Dublin,
7 April, 1882. His early life, before he devoted himself to
literary pursuits, calls for little remark. From a learned priest,
who had spent much time in Spain, he acquired that intimate
knowledge of Spanish, which he was later to turn to such good
advantage. In April, 1834, before he was yet seventeen, he
contributed his first verses to the "Dublin Satirist". He was one
of that brilliant coterie of writers whose utterances through the
"Nation" influenced so powerfully the Irish people in the middle
of the last century. In this organ, started by Charles Gavan Duffy
in 1842, appeared over the pseudonym of Desmond most of his
patriotic verse. In 1846 he was called to the Irish bar, but never
practised. In the same year he edited "The Poets and Dramatists of
Ireland", which he prefaced with an essay on the early history and
religion of his countrymen. He also edited about this time "The
Book of Irish Ballads" (by various authors), with an introductory
essay from his pen on ballad poetry in general. In 1850 appeared
his "Ballads, Poems, and Lyrics", original and translated. His
attention was first directed to Calderon by a passage in one of
Shelley's essays, and thenceforward the interpretation of the
"Spanish Shakespeare" claimed the greater part of his attention.
The first volume of his translations, containing six plays,
appeared in 1853, and was followed by further instalments in 1861,
1867, 1870, and 1873. His version of "Daybreak in Capacabana" was
completed only a few months before his death. Until 1864 he
resided principally on Killiney Hill, overlooking Dublin Bay. The
delicate health of some members of his family then rendered a
change of climate imperative, he paid a prolonged visit to the
Continent, and on his return settled in London, where he
published, in addition to his translations, "Shelley's Early
Life", which contains an interesting account of that poet's visit
to Dublin in 1812. He had already for some months resettled in his
native land, when death overtook him on Good Friday, 1882.
His poems are distinguished by a noble sense of harmony and an
exquisite sympathy with natural beauty. One of the most graceful
of Irish lyrists, he is entirely free from the morbidity and
fantastic sentiment so much affected by modern poets. Such poems
as "The Bridal of the Year", "Summer Longings", and his long
narrative poem, "The Voyage of St. Brendan", seem with the years
but to increase in general esteem. The last-mentioned, in which a
beautiful paraphrase of the "Ave Maria Stella" is inserted as the
evening song of the sailors, is not more clearly characterized by
its fine poetic insight than by that earnest religious feeling
which marked its author throughout life. But it is by his
incomparable version of Calderon that he has most surely won a
permanent place in English letters. For this task--always beset
with extreme difficulties--of transferring the poetry of one
language into the poetry of another without mutilating the spirit
or form of the original, he was qualified by the sympathy of his
countrymen with the Catholic spirit of the Latin races, and
especially with Spain as the mythical cradle of the Irish race.
His success is sufficiently testified by Ticknor, who declared in
his "History of Spanish Literature" that our author "has succeeded
in giving a faithful idea of what is grandest and most effective
in his [sc. Calderon's] genius...to a degree which I had
previously thought impossible. Nothing, I think, in the English
language will give us so true an impression of what is most
characteristic of the Spanish drama, and of Spanish poetry
generally".
Freeman's Journal (Dublin, 10 April, 1882); Nation (Dublin, 15
April, 1882); READ, Cabinet of Irish Literature, IV, 154;
O'DONOGHUE, Poets of Ireland (Dublin), 140; CLERKE in Dublin
Review, XL (1883), 260-93.
THOMAS KENNEDY
Transcribed by Dennis McCarthy
From the Catholic Encyclopedia, copyright � 1913 by the
Encyclopedia Press, Inc. Electronic version copyright � 1996 by
New Advent, Inc.
Taken from the New Advent Web Page (www.knight.org/advent).
This article is part of the Catholic Encyclopedia Project, an
effort aimed at placing the entire Catholic Encyclopedia 1913
edition on the World Wide Web. The coordinator is Kevin Knight,
editor of the New Advent Catholic Website. If you would like to
contribute to this worthwhile project, you can contact him by e-
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