Robert Graves

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Nov 7, 2024

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Join Paul O’Prey, Fran Brearton, and Bob Davis as they dive into the life of Robert Graves, a titan of 20th-century poetry and prose. Discover how Graves viewed poetry as his true calling, even while writing bestsellers like 'I, Claudius.' The conversation explores his tumultuous relationships, the duality of love reflected in his work, and the impact of his traumatic experiences in World War I. Unravel the complex themes of his poetry and the significant influences that shaped his artistic legacy.

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ANECDOTE

Graves' Family Background

Robert Graves was born in 1895 into a distinguished Anglo-Irish family.
His father, Alfred Percival Graves, supported the Gaelic revival and Celtic studies.

ANECDOTE

School Days and Boxing

Graves attended Charterhouse, excelling academically and athletically.
He boxed to counter anti-German bullying due to his German middle name.

ANECDOTE

Early Poetry Influences

Graves' early poetry was influenced by English and Welsh folk songs, ballads, and John Skelton.
His first collection, "Over the Brazier," was published in 1916.

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Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the author of 'I, Claudius' who was also one of the finest poets of the twentieth century. Robert Graves (1895 -1985) placed his poetry far above his prose. He once declared that from the age of 15 poetry had been his ruling passion and that he lived his life according to poetic principles, writing in prose only to pay the bills and that he bred the pedigree dogs of his prose to feed the cats of his poetry. Yet it’s for his prose that he’s most famous today, including 'I Claudius', his brilliant account of the debauchery of Imperial Rome, and 'Goodbye to All That', the unforgettable memoir of his early life including the time during the First World War when he was so badly wounded at the Somme that The Times listed him as dead.

With

Paul O’Prey Emeritus Professor of Modern Literature at the University of Roehampton, London

Fran Brearton Professor of Modern Poetry at Queen’s University, Belfast

And

Bob Davis Professor of Religious and Cultural Education at the University of Glasgow

Producer: Simon Tillotson

Robert Graves (ed. Paul O'Prey), In Broken Images: Selected Letters of Robert Graves 1914-1946 (Hutchinson, 1982)

Robert Graves (ed. Paul O'Prey), Between Moon and Moon: Selected letters of Robert Graves 1946-1972 (Hutchinson, 1984)

Robert Graves (ed. Beryl Graves and Dunstan Ward), The Complete Poems (Penguin Modern Classics, 2003)

Robert Graves, I, Claudius (republished by Penguin, 2006)

Robert Graves, King Jesus (republished by Penguin, 2011)

Robert Graves, The White Goddess (republished by Faber, 1999)

Robert Graves, The Greek Myths (republished by Penguin, 2017)

Robert Graves (ed. Michael Longley), Selected Poems (Faber, 2013)

Robert Graves (ed. Fran Brearton, intro. Andrew Motion), Goodbye to All That: An Autobiography: The Original Edition (first published 1929; Penguin Classics, 2014)

William Graves, Wild Olives: Life in Majorca with Robert Graves (Pimlico, 2001)

Richard Perceval Graves, Robert Graves: The Assault Heroic, 1895-1926 (Macmillan, 1986, vol. 1 of the biography)

Richard Perceval Graves, Robert Graves: The Years with Laura, 1926-1940 (Viking, 1990, vol. 2 of the biography)

Richard Perceval Graves, Robert Graves and the White Goddess, 1940-1985 (Orion, 1995, vol. 3 of the biography)

Miranda Seymour: Robert Graves: Life on the Edge (Henry Holt & Co, 1995)

In Our Time is a BBC Studios Audio Production