Invictus
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate,
I am the captain of my soul.
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William Ernest Henley | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 23 August 1849 Gloucester, England |
| Died | 11 July 1903 (aged 53) Woking, England |
| Occupation | Poet, critic, and editor |
| Nationality | English |
| Education | The Crypt School, Gloucester. St Andrews University. |
| Period | c. 1870–1903 |
| Notable works | "Invictus" |
| Spouse | Hannah Johnson Boyle |
| Children | Margaret Henley |
William Ernest Henley (August 23, 1849 – July 11, 1903) was an English poet, writer, critic and editor. Though he wrote several books of poetry, Henley is remembered most often for his 1875 poem "Invictus". A fixture in London literary circles, the one-legged Henley might have been the inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson's character Long John Silver (Treasure Island, 1883), while his young daughter Margaret Henleyinspired J. M. Barrie's choice of the name Wendy for the heroine of his play Peter Pan (1904).[1][2]
