David Perkins (1) (1928–)

As good as volume I, but not as interesting for the most part. That's probably just because I didn't know as much about the poetry covered in volume I, combined with the fact that most of the stuff covered in the last 180 pages of this one is guff. Perkins is rightly sceptical about much later twentieth century American poetry, and even when he praises he notes that there are huge problems - Ashbery, he admits, it boring; taking dictation from Ouija boards is, shall we say, not a great way to present yourself Mr Merrill.
The chapters on African-American, and feminist poetry are short and could probably be longer, the chapter on Nature Boy doggerel could certainly be shorter. The real downside to this volume is how little non-American post-war poetry is discussed- The UK as a whole gets 58 pages out of the 330 he sets aside for this period. Even from the evidence of this book, if you're going on quality that ratio should be reversed. A less even-handed author might cut the 330 back to 200 and give only 50 to America's innumerable, little, rebellious schools. On the other hand, chapter 16, on American poets who were formed by but rebelled against the New Criticism, gave me lots of names to hunt down.
Beautifully written, clear and concise despite its length.… (plus d'informations)

What's not to like? Beautifully written, comprehensive, fair without being bland. It's definitely written as a defense of modern poetry, so 'romantic' and associated terms are criticisms, which might not be perfectly reasonable. But you have to write from some perspective, and it's not like he hides it. Highly, highly recommended: you're guaranteed to feel like reading the poets he writes about, although the longer chapters dedicated to the major figures - Eliot, Pound and Yeats - aren't quite as much fun as the survey chapters. No matter. Can't wait for volume II.… (plus d'informations)

This anthology provides a detailed array of the works of the traditional English Romantic writers. Though the major six (Blake, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Byron, Shelley, and Keats) get the most space within the text, it also provides a strong sampling of other poets of the time. Poetry is the primary focus, but Perkins has also included some of the prose works of these authors as well. Particularly enlightening is the inclusion of the journals of Dorothy Wordsworth: they provide an interesting balance to the poems of Coleridge and William Wordsworth, and help to paint a more complete picture of the subjects of their poems. Though it is a large volume, it is also quite complete. I gained a much deeper appreciation for Romantic poetry with this textbook.… (plus d'informations)