One of the most important elements in Yeats' thought is his view of the tragic basis of art. This conception, which can best be called a tragic aesthetic, was developed shortly after 1900 in three prose works--certain fragments of the Samhain publication (1904), "Poetry and Tradition" (1907), and "The Tragic Theatre" (1910). The tragic view developed in these essays became the conceptual basis behind much of Yeats' poetry and therefore played a central role in the direction of his career. This thesis traces the lineaments of Yeats' tragic aesthetic in these early essays, determining its outline in the dreamy, often vague language in which it is expressed, and shows its impact on his poetry from 1904 to the end of his career in 1939.

Both contemporary and modern critics recognize the industrial, regional, and personal conflicts in North and South. There are, however, other conflicts which Mrs. Gaskell treats and resolves. This study emphasizes inner struggles resulting from repressive Victorian sexual mores. An examination of conflicts at a deeper -level than has previously been attempted clarifies motivations of individual characters, reveals a conscious and unconscious pattern within the novel and gives a fuller appreciation of Mrs. Gaskell's psychological insight. Included for discussion are examples of the Victorian feminine stereotype and the use of religion as sexual sublimation. A major portion of the paper concerns the growth of the heroine, Margaret Hale, from repressed sexuality to an acceptance of womanhood in Victorian society.