Literary notes about alastor (AI summary)
The term “Alastor” plays multiple roles in literature, functioning both as a title and a character name imbued with mythic and psychological depth. In the Romantic tradition, it is most notably adopted by Shelley in his poem "Alastor, or the Spirit of Solitude," where it encapsulates the poet’s yearning for isolation, despair, and an unattainable ideal ([1], [2]). At the same time, “Alastor” appears in ancient texts as the name of a heroic or trusted companion—its use in Homer's works, for instance, imbues the term with a classical gravitas ([3], [4]). Moreover, its etymological roots as “the victim of an avenging spirit” add a layer of supernatural foreboding, while later authors invoke its autobiographical resonance to explore inner turmoil and the solitary spirit of artistic creation ([5], [6], [7]).
- Alastor, or the Spirit of Solitude (1816) is by far the best expression of Shelley's greater mood.
— from English Literature by William J. Long - Another poet of the first rank who may be claimed by the Thames is Shelley, who was at Great Marlow when he wrote The Revolt of Islam and Alastor .
— from The Thames by G. E. (Geraldine Edith) Mitton - Meanwhile his two trusty squires, Mecisteus son of Echius, and Alastor, came up and bore him to the ships groaning in his great pain.
— from The Iliad by Homer - Alastor, Chromius, Haemon, round him wait, Bias the good, and Pelagon the great.
— from The Iliad by Homer - " (4 "Alastor" is a Greek word meaning "the victim of an Avenging Spirit.")
— from Shelley by Sydney Waterlow - Alastor is therefore the poet's confession, not simply of failure, but of undying hope in some better thing that is to come.
— from English Literature by William J. Long - Apart from its intrinsic merit as a work of art, "Alastor" has great autobiographical value.
— from Percy Bysshe Shelley by John Addington Symonds
