Introduction:
�A Coat� is a poem written by W. B. Yeats. It is a self-referential poem that brings out the poet�s thoughts on his poetry.
About the Poet:
William Butler Yeats (1865-1939) was an eminent Irish poet and writer. He was a former Senator of the Irish Free State. Famous works of his include �The Lake Isle of Innisfree�, �Sailing to Byzantium�, and �Easter, 1916�.�
Structure:
This is a short poem consisting of 10 lines encompassed in a single stanza. It follows the rhyme scheme �abbacdccde�
Explanation of the Poem:
I made my song a coat� Covered with embroideries� Out of old mythologies� From heel to throat;� But the fools caught it,� Wore it in the world�s eyes� As though they�d wrought it.� Song, let them take it For there�s more enterprise� In walking naked.
The poem begins with the poet referring to itself as a �coat�. He states that he made it �Covered with embroideries/Out of old mythologies/From heel to throat�, referring to his compositions consisting of classical Hellenic literature through and through. However, the poet then states that the �fools caught it�, pointing out that others plagiarised. They �Wore it in the world�s eyes/As though they�d wrought it�, meaning to state that they used his creation and paraded it as theirs. The poem concludes with an assertive tone where the poet directly addresses the poem. He declares for �them� to �take it� without fight, deeming that �there�s more enterprise/ In walking naked�. This means that the poet finds more honour in shedding his clothes off than in fighting with those who plagiarised his work over the ownership of his hard work.
Conclusion:
This is a short and succinct poem that brings out how artists feel when their works are unlawfully plagiarised in those times.�