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Edward Carpenter England (1844 - 1929) Timeline Secular or Eclectic Yoga / Hindu Poems by Edward Carpenter Books - Links |
He was a friend and correspondent with many of the important writers, philosophers, and mystics of the era, including Whitman, Tagore, Gandhi, Jack London, and Annie Besant.
Carpenter's best known political work was Civilisation: Its Cause and Cure in which he argues that civilization is akin to a disease, something that no culture can survive more than a few centuries. Building on new ideas of psychology and sociology, Carpenter prescribed a personal and societal "cure" that involved a deep connection to the land along with spiritual development. Many of aspects of his "mystical socialism" were influenced by Hinduism and yogic philosophy.
Edward Carpenter also spoke up for gay rights and more open sexual ideas in the rigid Victorian society of his day. His book, The Intermediate Sex is an important early text of lesbian and gay rights thought in the 20th century.
Towards Democracy is his primary collection of poetry. Much of the writing here has a prose-poetry quality, similar in style to Tagore's Gitanjali or the works of Gibran, but Carpenter's poems have his own unique blend of social, political, and spiritual currents.
Poems by Edward Carpenter
- Freedom at last!
- Freedom! the deep breath!
- The Central Calm
- The Lake of Beauty
- The sun shines, as of old
- The sun, the moon and the stars
Recommended Books: Edward Carpenter
Related Links
Edward Carpenter - Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Carpenter
Good biographical overview and introduction to Carpenter's political and philosophical worldview.
Edward Carpenter - Wikisource
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Author:Edward_Carpenter
Several of Edward Carpenter's books free online.
The Edward Carpenter Archive
http://www.edwardcarpenter.net/
A web-based archive of works by Edward Carpenter.
The Edward Carpenter Forum
http://www.edwardcarpenterforum.org/
