Bramble Brae (ePub)

Robert Seymour Bridges OM (23 October 1844 - 21 April 1930) was an accomplished British poet, and poet laureate from 1913 until his death. Educated at Eton and Corpus Christi College, Oxford, Bridges later studied medicine in London before turning his focus entirely to literature. He developed a reputation for his technical mastery of prosody and for working within strict forms while also seeking fresh approaches to poetic expression. Bridges' literary style is marked by a meticulous attention to structure and a dedication to the exploration of human experiences and emotions. His significant contributions to poetry include the development of the neo-Miltonic syllabics, a form that revived the syllabic verse of John Milton. Notably, 'Bramble Brae' is a collection that encapsulates his talents, featuring varied pieces that highlight his love for nature and lyrical clarity. Bridges also edited the poems of Gerard Manley Hopkins, his close friend, and was instrumental in bringing Hopkins' groundbreaking work to the public's attention posthumously. In addition to his poetry, Bridges' work in language studies is well recognized, notably in his tractate 'The Dialectical Destruction of the English Language' (1908), where he advocates for spelling reform to better reflect pronunciation. His intellectual pursuits and literary output secured his place among the foremost poets of his time, influencing early 20th-century English poetry.