Trafodwn William Thomas (1832-1878) yn y bennod hon, bardd sy’n cael ei gofio fel ‘Islwyn’.
Yn ôl Glyn Tegai Hughes, hwn oedd bardd Cymraeg gorau’r bedwaredd ganrif ar bymtheg. Ond er i Islwyn ennill enw fel bardd o bwys yn ystod ei oes trwy gystadlu’n aml mewn eisteddfodau ac ati, nid oes llawer sy’n arbennig am yr holl farddoniaeth eisteddfodol hon. Mae’r bardd hwn yn haeddu lle anrhydeddus yn hanes llenyddiaeth Gymraeg oherwydd un gerdd a gyfansoddodd, ‘Y Storm’. Ond mae’r gerdd honno’n hir iawn – dros 6,000 o linellau! Dim ond ar ôl i Islwyn farw y cyhoeddwyd y bryddest fawr, a chafodd ddylanwad mawr ar genhedlaeth arall o feirdd Cymraeg. Myfyriwn ynghylch rhai dyfyniadau dethol wrth i ni gnoi cil ar natur unigryw y gerdd uchelgeisiol hon.
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‘And it’s Nature who’s singing its anthem to me’: Islwyn and his ‘Storm’
We discuss William Thomas (1832-1878) in this episode, a poet remembered as ‘Islwyn’.
According to Glyn Tegai Hughes, he was the best Welsh-language poet of the nineteenth century. But although Islwyn won a name as a poet of significance during his lifetime by competing often in eisteddfodau and etc., there is not much of worth in all of this eisteddfodic poetry. This poet deserves an honoured place in the history of Welsh literature because of one poem he composed, ‘The Storm. But this poem is very long – over 6,000 lines! It was only after Islwyn died that the great pryddest was published, and it had a big influence on another generation of Welsh poets. We consider a few choice quotes as we mull over the unique nature of this ambitious poem.
Cyflwynwyd gan: Yr Athro Jerry Hunter a'r Athro Richard Wyn Jones
Cynhyrchwyd gan: Richard Martin ar gyfer Mimosa Cymru
Cerddoriaeth: 'Might Have Done' gan The Molenes
Darllen Pellach/Further Reading:
- ‘Y Storm’ Gyntaf gan Islwyn, gol. Meurig Walters (1980).
- Glyn Tegai Hughes, ‘Islwyn and Y Storm’, in Hywel Teifi Edwards (ed.), A guide to Welsh literature c. 1800-1900 (2000).
- Meredydd Evans, ‘Y Storm’ gyntaf (1988).
- Alun Llwelyn-Williams, Y Nos, Y Niwl a’r Ynys [:] Agweddau ar y Profiad Rhamantaidd yng Nghymru 1890-1914 (1960).
