The Writer and the Muse
Throughout the history of art and culture, artists have always been inspired by their muses and writers are no different. There are many famous works of literature that you may not know came from real life inspiration. Here is a list of several of our favorite famous writers and their muses.
1. In Dante’s The Divine Comedy, he fictionalized Beatrice with whom he had actually been in love with since they met at age 9.
2. Shakespeare famously had a muse known only as “the Dark Lady” whose true identity has never been discovered.
3. Some of Keats’ best and most intense poetry, including "La Belle Dame Sans Merci” was said to be written out of his passionate and obsessive love for Fanny Brawne.
4. F. Scott Fitzgerald often took excerpts from the diary of Zelda Sayre and incorporated them into his novels.
5. Not all muses are female. It’s said that Jack Kerouac was inspired by Neal Cassady.
Although the relationship with muse and artist can be passionate, volatile or even unrequited, there is no doubt that the role of the muse has been an important one in the creation of some of mankind’s accomplished art and literature.
