Algernon Charles Swinburne, English Poet
Illustration featured in Cartoon Portraits and Biographical Sketches of Men of the Day (1873) with drawings by Frederick Watty and accompanied by biographical pieces on each of the subjects. Algernon Charles Swinburne (April 5, 1837 - April 10, 1909) was an English poet, playwright, novelist, and critic. He wrote several novels, and contributed to the famous Eleventh Edition of the EncycloÌ_dia Britannica. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in every year from 1903 to 1907 and again in 1909. He is considered a decadent poet, although he professed to more vice than he actually indulged in; Oscar Wilde stated that Swinburne was "a braggart in matters of vice, who had done everything he could to convince his fellow citizens of his homosexuality and bestiality without being in the slightest degree a homosexual or a bestializer." Many critics consider his mastery of vocabulary, rhyme and meter impressive, although he has also been criticized for his florid style and word choices that only fit the rhyme scheme rather than contributing to the meaning of the piece. H. P. Lovecraft considered him "the only real poet in either England or America after the death of Mr. Edgar Allan Poe." Swinburne was an alcoholic and algolagniac (deriving sexual pleasure and stimulation from physical pain), and a highly excitable character. His health suffered as a result, and in 1879 at the age of 42 he was taken into care by his friend Theodore Watts, who looked after him for the rest of his life. It was said of Watts that he saved the man and killed the poet. Swinburne died in 1909 at the age of 72.
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