A preface to Wilfred Owen

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Bibliographic Information

A preface to Wilfred Owen

John Purkis

（Preface books）

Longman, 1999

  • : pbk.

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Note

Includes bibliographical references and index

Description and Table of Contents

Volume

ISBN 9780582276512

Description

This text seeks to understand how the poet Wilfred Owen fits into the poetic debate about the meaning of war. It also explores how his literary stance was formed by earlier and contemporary influences and comments in detail about some of his works.

Table of Contents

  • Part 1 The writer and his setting: before battle - Owen's life prior to enlistment in 1915
  • during the war
  • afterwards. Part 2 Cultural and historical background: the drift to war 1890s - 1914
  • the course of the war in outline from a British point of view
  • images - the artist and truth
  • the poetry of the Great War down to 1917
  • the peace party and Siegfried Sassoon
  • Owen's mature position about the war. Part 3 Critical survey: the art of Owen's poetry
  • the text and order of the poems
  • influcences 1 - Keats
  • first publications - "Song of Songs", "Miners"
  • influcences 2 - Tennyson - "Hospital Barge", "Futility"
  • influences 3 - Shelley
  • "Wheels" (1919) - "Strange Meeting", fragment - "Earth's wheels run oiled with blood"
  • new inspirations 1 - Sassoon - "The Sentry"
  • poems (1920) - "Exposure", the gates of modernism
  • the poems of Wilfed Owen (1931) - "The Roads Also", "The Kind Ghosts"
  • religion and humanity - "At a Calvary near the Ancre".
Volume

: pbk. ISBN 9780582276529

Description

This book presents a brief, yet comprehensive biography of Wilfred Owen, placing his work in the cultural and historical context of the early twentieth century. Owen is now perceived to be a permanent part of our consciousness of the First World War, and this text provides a necessary revision of this great poet and his background in such light. The first few chapters provide important biographical information on Owen, considering his life both before enlisting and during the war. They discuss crucial aspects to understanding Owen's work, such as the poetry and painting that influenced his writing, and the period of national mourning after the war. The study also makes suitable reference to other war poets such as Sassoon, and considers the influence that such poetry had on Owen's own writing. The second half of the book provides detailed analyses of ten of his major poems including `Song of Songs' and `Strange Meeting', and aims to clarify the stages of his poetic career. Finally, a detailed reference section is included to assist further study. The text is aimed at A level and undergraduate students studying courses such as twentieth-century poetry, and the First World War poets. The content will also serve as a useful guide to all who are interested in reading about the background to this great poet.

Table of Contents

List of illustrations introduction Family trees Chronological Table Abbreviations Biographical Section 1. Before battle: Owen's life prior to enlistment in 1915 Early life and education 1893-1911 Dunsden 1911-13 Bordeaux 2. During the war Enlistment and training 1915-16 Into battle Craiglockhart Scarborough and Ripon. Return to the Front 3. Afterwards Family matters The publication of the poems Mourning and the process of regeneration Cultural and Historical Background 1. The drift to war 1890s-1914 Children in uniform The ideology of sacrifice 2. The course of the war in outline from a British point of view Total war and the manipulation of the `truth' 3. Images- the artist and truth 4. The poetry of the Great War down to 1917 5. The Peace party and Siegfried Sassoon 6. Owen's mature position about the war Critical Survey The art of Owen's poetry The text and order of the poems Influences 1. Keats First publications `Song of Songs' `Miners' Influences 2. Tennyson `Hospital Barge' `Futility' Influences 3. Shelley `Wheels' (1919) `Strange Meeting' Fragment: `Earth's wheels run oiled with blood' New Inspirations 1. Sassoon `The Sentry' `Poems' (1920) `Exposure' The gates of modernism `The Poems of Wilfred Owen' (1931) `The Roads Also' `The Kind Ghosts' Religion and humanity `At a Calvary near the Ancre' Reference Section Biographical section Information about friends and contemporaries Gazetteer Further Reading Index

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