Denis Donoghue: Words Alone

I've read lots of T.S. Eliot, and many books about his work, buy it is such a pleasure to read Denis Donoghue's "Words Alone" about the poems of TSE. The close reading style is never pedantic, and his arguments are totally integrated. It feels a little like having your hair combed with a firmly held, bore-bristle (sic). Donoghue used to teach at Trinity College Dublin, and then at NYU. To have such a teacher one must be blessed, as a friend of mine was. But for Ireland to lose such a teacher..... I for one, will have to finish it, and start all over again, and hope against hope that I have mind enough to hold it.

Categories: poetry, ireland, irish, crit, literature, criticism, contemporary, american,

Muldoon, Paul

I had saved this and just now re-read it. What a very good poem it is.

Lines for the Centenary of the Birth of Samuel Beckett (1906-1989)

By PAUL MULDOON
Published: April 16, 2006, New York Times

Only now do we see how each crossroads
was bound to throw up not only a cross
but a couple of gadabouts with goads,
a couple of gadabouts at a loss

as to why they were at the beck and call
of some old crock soaring above the culch
of a kitchen midden at evenfall,
of some old crock roaring across the gulch

as a hanged man roars out to a hanged man.
Now bucket nods to bucket of the span
of an ash yoke, or something of that ilk ...

Now one hanged man kicks at the end of his rope
in another little attack of hope.
Now a frog in one bucket thickens the milk.

Paul Muldoon is the author of "Horse Latitudes." For me, the absolute stand out book of last year, was Muldoon's book of essays. A must read.


Categories: poetry, ireland, irish, crit, literature, criticism, contemporary, american,