Morris, William

William (1834-1896), an English poet, storyteller, craftsman, and social reformer. He was born at Walthamstow, Essex, and received his education at Oxford University. To understand Morris' many-sided genius, it must be borne in mind that he is preeminently an artist--an "Artist of the Beautiful," Stedman calls him. His work has been important in several directions. While his influence in the matter of household furnishings and decoration will be permanent, his name will be known longest and most widely for his poems. His poems are narrative. They are often epical in character. Full of charming fancies, but displaying no lofty imagination, they are restful, never soul-stirring. Above all and through all, they are beautiful. It is the artist who gives them their chief charm.

Morris takes Chaucer as master and model. His sources are all old, but cover a wide field. He searches for the rare, the curious, and takes it from the classical or oriental writers, from the Gesta Romanorum, from the Eddas of Iceland, or from the British romances of Malory. His first poem, published in 1858, was The Defense of Guinevere. Some years later The Life and Death of Jason appeared, followed shortly by The Earthly Paradise, in which Morris reaches his height as a storyteller. The framework is a story of travelers voyaging in search of an earthly paradise. Two tales, one classical, one medieval, are given for each month of the year. The Story of Sigurd and the Fall of the Niblungs is regarded by some critics as the greatest epic poem of the nineteenth century. Other poetical writings are The Aeneid of Virgil Done into English Verse and The Odyssey of Homer Done into English Verse.

In 1863 Morris began the manufacture of stained glass, wallpaper, and artistic furniture from his own designs. This work he continued for many years. In this connection were published The Decorative Art, Hopes and Fears for Art, Signs of Change, and Architecture, Industry, and Wealth. The influence of Morris' ideas has had a marked effect on household decoration, tending to simplicity, and to the beauty of artistic lines and harmonious coloring. He taught that, to be useful, a thing need not be ugly. And his oft quoted statement, "I would have nothing in my home that I do not know to be useful or believe to be ornamental," has helped many a housekeeper to lighten her labors while she made her home more beautiful thereby. The Morris chair, combining comfort and beauty, was designed by William Morris, and the popularity of straight lines in household furniture is due probably to his influence.

In 1890 Morris established the Kelm-scott Press at Hammersmith, where he published artistic editions of Chaucer, Beowulf, and others, including editions of his own works. In 1885 he began lecturing to workingmen. His views were intensely democratic. He helped to support the Commonwealth, a socialistic journal. His theories may seem inconsistent with the fact that his own artistic work sold at prices which put it beyond the reach of the majority; but there is no doubt of his sincerity, and that it was the utter lack of beauty in common life that led to his socialistic views.

During his later years Morris published a series of romances in prose and verse, The Tale of the House of the Wolfings, The Story of the Glittering Plain, The Wood Beyond the World, The Well at the World's End, and others. He also produced several volumes in collaboration with Magnusson, the Icelandic scholar. Two of these are The Story of Grettir the Strong and Volsunga Saga.