Barry Ahearn – författare

Many critics have noticed the paradoxes and contradictions in the work of William Carlos Williams, but few have analysed them in detail. Professor Ahearn argues that Williams criticism has not gone far enough in recognizing the uses Williams saw for contradiction. He contends that Williams began to acquire his own voice as a poet when he recognized that he could be a vehicle for contending voices. His reading departs from previous examinations of the early poetry in the emphasis it places on the poems as expressions of Williams's personal struggles with himself, his parents, his domestic role and his social position. We find a Williams whose contribution to modernism came not through a radical break with tradition or a rejection of inherited poetic norms alone, but rather in a cultivation of tension, conflict, and a kind of poetic 'crisis' that could be held forth as the metier of the modernist writer. The reconciliation of things as old as civilization itself with the newest form of poetry, Ahearn argues is the principal theme of Williams early poetic practice.

Many critics have noticed the paradoxes and contradictions in the work of William Carlos Williams, but few have analysed them in detail. Professor Ahearn argues that Williams criticism has not gone far enough in recognizing the uses Williams saw for contradiction. He contends that Williams began to acquire his own voice as a poet when he recognized that he could be a vehicle for contending voices. His reading departs from previous examinations of the early poetry in the emphasis it places on the poems as expressions of Williams's personal struggles with himself, his parents, his domestic role and his social position. We find a Williams whose contribution to modernism came not through a radical break with tradition or a rejection of inherited poetic norms alone, but rather in a cultivation of tension, conflict, and a kind of poetic 'crisis' that could be held forth as the metier of the modernist writer. The reconciliation of things as old as civilization itself with the newest form of poetry, Ahearn argues is the principal theme of Williams early poetic practice.

Renowned poet William Carlos Williams and literary innovator Louis Zukofsky maintained a relationship through correspondence as both collaborators and friends between 1928 and 1963. Their letters have remained largely unpublished until now. Edited by Barry Ahearn, The Correspondence of William Carlos Williams and Louis Zukofsky chronicles the professional and personal relationship between Williams and Zukofsky as they present one another with criticism, suggestions and confidences that are at turns touching and astonishingly candid. In addition to delving into the creative processes of the two men, this exciting and extensive collection provides insight into such literary icons as Ezra Pound, E.E. Cummings, T.S. Eliot and Conrad Aiken. The analytical voice of Zukofsky and the experimental style of Williams radiate in these letters, creating a vivid and invaluable document of American literature.

Pound, Frost, Moore and Poetic Precision: Science in American Modernist Poetry examines three major poets in light of the demand that poetry aspire to scientific precision. The critical insistence that poetry be precise affected every one of these poets, and looking at how they responded to this insistence offers a new perspective on their achievements and, by extension, twentieth-century poetry in general. Ezra Pound sought to associate poetry with the precision of modern science, technology and mathematics as a way to eliminate or reduce error.  Robert Frost, however, welcomed imprecision as a fundamental aspect of existence that the poet could use.  Marianne Moore appreciated the value of both precision and imprecision, especially with respect to her religious perspective on human and natural phenomena. By analyzing these particular poets’ reaction to the value placed on precision, Barry Ahearn explores how that emphasis influenced the broader culture, literary culture and twentieth-century Modernist American poetry.