1st Edition

Belonging and Estrangement in the Poetry of Philip Larkin, R.S. Thomas and Charles Causley

By Rory Waterman Copyright 2014

    Focusing on the significance of place, connection and relationship in three poets who are seldom considered in conjunction, Rory Waterman argues that Philip Larkin, R.S. Thomas and Charles Causley epitomize many of the emotional and societal shifts and mores of their age. Waterman looks at the foundations underpinning their poetry; the attempts of all three to forge a sense of belonging with or separateness from their readers; the poets’ varying responses to their geographical and cultural origins; the belonging and estrangement that inheres in relationships, including marriage; the forced estrangements of war; the antagonism between social belonging and a need for isolation; and, finally, the charged issues of faith and mortality in an increasingly secularized country.

    Acknowledgments, Introduction, 1 Provincial and Universal: Traditions and the Poet-Reader Relationship, 2 Home, Leaving and Finding One’s Proper Ground, 3 Kissing with the Eyes Closed: Love and Marriage, 4 Between the Wars, 5 Searching for the Best Society, 6 Awkward Reverence: Faith and Mortality, Bibliography, Index

    Biography

    Rory Waterman is Lecturer in English and Creative Writing at Nottingham Trent University, UK.

    ’Rory Waterman argues persuasively for the significance of place, connection and relationship in the work of Philip Larkin, R.S. Thomas and Charles Causley. His is an important study that offers fresh insights into the work of three of the finest twentieth-century poets in English.' David Mason, Colorado College, USA 'His discussions of 'An Arundel Tomb' and 'Aubade' are excellent, and truly benefit from his archival research ... there is much to celebrate here, not least some incisive readings of Thomas and Causley, some superb archival research, more critical attention for Causley ...' About Larkin