Ask The Puma Research Guides: To an Athlete Dying Young

To an Athlete Dying Young

Alfred Edward (A. E.) Housman was a British scholar and poet  whose most famous collection of poems is A Shropshire Lad, published in 1896.  One of the better-known poems appearing in A Shropshire Lad is “To an Athlete Dying Young.”  In this poem, an accomplished young runner passes away right after he achieves his greatest glory.  The irony expressed in this sad poem is that it may be better to die young, before old age and loss of fame can occur.

LINCCWeb online catalog – Search Term

•  Housman, A. E. (Keyword)

Call Numbers for Browsing the Shelves

• PN6014 .R58 1991
• PR4809 .H15 1967

Circulating Books and Materials – A Selected List

• Bloom, Harold (Ed.).  Bloom’s Major Poets: A. E. Housman. 2003.

                               Call Number:  *(E-Journal – View online by going to the LINCC online catalog and then by using the search term Housman, A. E. – Keyword.  Next, within Bloom’s Major Poets: A. E. Housman, focus on the article “Critical Analysis of A Shropshire Lad 19 and 21.”)

• Housman, A. E.  The Collected Poems of A. E. Housman.  1967.

                              Call Number:  PR4809 .H15 1967   *(See pgs. 32-33.)

• Hunt, Douglas (Ed.).  The Riverside Anthology of Literature ( Second Edition). 1991.

                              Call Number:  PN6014 .R58 1991   *(See pgs. 624-625.)

Reference Materials

• Critical Survey of Poetry. – Call Number:  REF PN1021 .C7 2003

o Vol. 4, pg. 1858

• Masterplots II:  Poetry Series (Revised Edition). – Call Number:  REF PN1110.5 .M37  2002

o Vol. 7, pgs. 3889-3891

• Poetry Criticism. – Call Number:  REF PN1010 .P6

o Vol. 2, pgs. 180, 183, 185, 191-194, 198, 201

o Vol. 43, pgs. 214, 217, 248-249, 254, 261, 273

• Poetry for Students. – Call Number:  REF PN1112 .P752

o Vol. 7, pgs. 228-244

• Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. – Call Number:  REF PN771 .G27

o Vol. 1, pg. 357

o Vol. 10, pgs. 247, 250

Research Databases

To access Valencia’s research databases, open your Atlas account, select ‘Search the Library’, then select ‘Databases A-Z’.

• Academic Search Complete
• JSTOR
• Literature Resources from Gale
• Poetry & Short Story Reference Center (EBSCO) 

This Research Guide is designed to help users find information on a particular topic within the Valencia College East Campus Library.  This is by no means a comprehensive list of resources and other resources may be available on this topic.  Please check the LINCCWeb, Valencia East’s online catalog, to verify the availability of circulating books within the library.  Feel free to ask a librarian for help if you need further assistance.