January 14, 2014

MARY MACLEOD (1647-1704)

Scottish Gaelic poet, a major representative of the emergent 17th-century poetical school that gradually supplanted the classical Gaelic bards.

Her poetry is written in simple, natural rhythms and incorporates much of the imagery of the bardic poets.

It mainly deals with the heroic exploits of the Macleod family and expresses her deep emotional attachment to the family.

She spent most of her life at the Macleod household of Dunvegan on the Isle of Skye, acting as nurse to generations of chieftains.

Only a few of her poems survive; among these her tender and nostalgic elegies for the dead Macleod´s are notable for their fresh style and sincerity of feeling.

No comments:

Post a Comment