exact mystery

The poetic life of Vernon Watkins

Häftad, Engelska, 2020

273 kr

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Beskrivning

Vernon Watkins is a great riddle at the heart of twentieth century poetry. His poetry has been praised in the highest terms by, among others, T.S. Eliot, W.B. Yeats, Dylan Thomas and Marianne Moore. Kathleen Raine called him: "the greatest lyric poet of my generation." Yet he has remained, for the most part, almost entirely unknown.One reason for this is that Watkins in no way sought for fame. Another is that after a transformative spiritual experience, marking a new beginning in his life and work, Watkins rarely referred to the visionary, crisis-ridden dramatic path of his early years. Right as this was for him, it has prevented the full context of his life from being seen. An Exact Mystery, the first volume of Watkins's authorized biography, sets this to rights, depicting his path to maturity as a poet and a person, from his early years in Wales and schooling at Repton up to his appearance as a published poet, aged 35, during the Second World War. Along the way, Ramsbotham describes his extreme clash with Christopher Isherwood at Cambridge; his 'spiritual emergency' in Cardiff and Rome; his links with W.B. Yeats and T.S. Eliot; and his intense friendship and collaboration with his complementary opposite, Dylan Thomas.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum:2020-09-29
Mått:140 x 216 x 22 mm
Vikt:486 g
Format:Häftad
Språk:Engelska
Antal sidor:310
Förlag:The Choir Press
ISBN:9781789631197

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Mer om författaren

Richard Ramsbotham was born in Northumberland in 1962. He studied Modern Languages and English at Cambridge University. Between 1989 and 1993 he lectured in English Literature at Warsaw University in Poland. After training in Speech and Drama he continued lecturing but also worked as an actor and wrote and directed plays. He later formed his own theatre and educational company. He is the author of Who Wrote Bacon? William Shakespeare, Francis Bacon and James 1. A Mystery for the 21st Century (Temple Lodge, 2004) and has written numerous plays: 13 Mirrors; Through a Glass Darkly; I am Andrey Belji; Rewinding the War. He is completing a translation of Rudolf Steiner's 4 Mystery Dramas. He has also written many articles on literary, cultural and political themes. In 1986 he discovered the recently published Collected Poems of Vernon Watkins and was (and remains) astonished that he had never heard Vernon Watkins mentioned at Cambridge nor encountered him in literary criticism. After meeting Gwen Watkins, the poet's widow, she asked him to write Watkins's authorized biography. In 2006, the 100th anniversary of the poet's birth, he edited New Selected Poems of Vernon Watkins (Carcanet, 2006).An Exact Mystery - the Poetic Life of Vernon Watkins (Part One) was originally written in time for October 8th, 2017 - the 50th anniversary of Watkins's death.

Innehållsförteckning

List of Illustrations vii Acknowledgements ix Foreword - By Gwen Watkins xiii Introduction xv Chapter One Birth and Early Years (1906-1920)Chapter Two Repton (1920-1924)Chapter Three Cambridge (1924-1925)Chapter Four Cardiff (1925-1928) 59 'Beyond Time's Chain'Chapter Five 'Pivotal Crisis In Time' (1929)Chapter Six Second Apprenticeship (1930-1934Chapter SevenSwansea's Other Poet (1935-1936)Chapter Eight'Wales' And Ireland (1937-1938)Chapter NineA Death and a Birth (1938-1939)Chapter Ten'Sailors on the Moving Land' (1939-1941)AppendixUnpublished Poems by Vernon WatkinsEndnotes