Read Keats's Metaphors for the Poetic Imagination

Keats's Metaphors for the Poetic Imagination

Mario L. D'Avanzo

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Description:Metaphor has given rise to much poetry and more criticism. Professor D'Avanzo's book attempts to prove that Keats made repeated use of certain organizing metaphors to describe poetic inspiration, the poetry-making process, and the structure of poetry itself. Textually oriented, this study utilizes the method of collation rather than chronology; the author traces all uses of a particular metaphor from the earliest to the late poems, and from the letters to the poetry and vice versa. With this method, Professor D'Avanzo undertakes an analysis which aims at linking the poems to each other and at linking the poems to the letters.The Romantic responsibility to one's own imagination occasioned a whole system of poetic theory that still functions. Within that system the creative process involves the role of the intensely active imagination in establishing a close relationship between the poet and some part of an organic universe, and the Romantic poet, willfully or involuntarily, defines this process even while using it. Professor D'Avanzo holds that this sort of definition is at the core of Keats's poetry and that it is therefore necessary to understanding thoroughly the meaning of the figurative language which, in turn, elucidates the meaning of the poetry.Each chapter deals with a particular set of metaphors, but each metaphor is related with some other to form an interwoven chain of figures. Depicting the poetic imagination, the poetic experience, and the structure of poetry are all major themes upon which repeated variations are noted. The concept of the arc of poetic imagination is presented, discussed, and correlated to the body of the poetry. In this arc there is the poetic flight, the descent from the apex of poetic release, and the two worlds of reality—the one left behind in the poetic frenzy, and the one in which the poet returns as the poetic vision fades. The author uses myths, legends, archetypes liberally in his explications, as well as frequent references to Keats's literary predecessors.The salient point of the book is the novel and highly original interpretation given two well known Keats poems, "La Belle Dame sans Merci," and "Ode to Psyche." In the opinion of the author, the first of these poems describes perfectly the poet's semi-circular arc of imaginative ascent, fulfillment, and decline into the world of reality, and is, then, a poem about poetry and imagination. The second is Keats's prayer in worship of the imagination and contains thirteen metaphors for poetry and the imaginative process, here examined in the light of earlier chapters in the book. The commentaries and explications of these two poems introduce a radically different tack in Keatsian scholarship. The author presents cogent arguments for their consideration, and his reading of the poems if penetrating and solidly grounded in the texts.Discerning the inner life of a poet is never an easy nor a sure task. Professor D'Avanzo attempts it through the methodical organization of metaphors found in the poems themselves and various explanations found in the letters. As a result, his study throws new and significant light on one of the most imaginative poets in all English literature. Provocative in its analysis, it leaves the reader with a fresh perspective and renewed intellectual curiosity about Keats's poetry and poetics.Mario L. D'Avanzo is associate professor of English at Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island. He has published essays on Melville, and a number of articles in scholarly literary journals.We have made it easy for you to find a PDF Ebooks without any digging. And by having access to our ebooks online or by storing it on your computer, you have convenient answers with Keats's Metaphors for the Poetic Imagination. To get started finding Keats's Metaphors for the Poetic Imagination, you are right to find our website which has a comprehensive collection of manuals listed.
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Pages: 232

Format: PDF, EPUB & Kindle Edition

Publisher: Duke University Press

Release: 1967

ISBN

Description: Metaphor has given rise to much poetry and more criticism. Professor D'Avanzo's book attempts to prove that Keats made repeated use of certain organizing metaphors to describe poetic inspiration, the poetry-making process, and the structure of poetry itself. Textually oriented, this study utilizes the method of collation rather than chronology; the author traces all uses of a particular metaphor from the earliest to the late poems, and from the letters to the poetry and vice versa. With this method, Professor D'Avanzo undertakes an analysis which aims at linking the poems to each other and at linking the poems to the letters.The Romantic responsibility to one's own imagination occasioned a whole system of poetic theory that still functions. Within that system the creative process involves the role of the intensely active imagination in establishing a close relationship between the poet and some part of an organic universe, and the Romantic poet, willfully or involuntarily, defines this process even while using it. Professor D'Avanzo holds that this sort of definition is at the core of Keats's poetry and that it is therefore necessary to understanding thoroughly the meaning of the figurative language which, in turn, elucidates the meaning of the poetry.Each chapter deals with a particular set of metaphors, but each metaphor is related with some other to form an interwoven chain of figures. Depicting the poetic imagination, the poetic experience, and the structure of poetry are all major themes upon which repeated variations are noted. The concept of the arc of poetic imagination is presented, discussed, and correlated to the body of the poetry. In this arc there is the poetic flight, the descent from the apex of poetic release, and the two worlds of reality—the one left behind in the poetic frenzy, and the one in which the poet returns as the poetic vision fades. The author uses myths, legends, archetypes liberally in his explications, as well as frequent references to Keats's literary predecessors.The salient point of the book is the novel and highly original interpretation given two well known Keats poems, "La Belle Dame sans Merci," and "Ode to Psyche." In the opinion of the author, the first of these poems describes perfectly the poet's semi-circular arc of imaginative ascent, fulfillment, and decline into the world of reality, and is, then, a poem about poetry and imagination. The second is Keats's prayer in worship of the imagination and contains thirteen metaphors for poetry and the imaginative process, here examined in the light of earlier chapters in the book. The commentaries and explications of these two poems introduce a radically different tack in Keatsian scholarship. The author presents cogent arguments for their consideration, and his reading of the poems if penetrating and solidly grounded in the texts.Discerning the inner life of a poet is never an easy nor a sure task. Professor D'Avanzo attempts it through the methodical organization of metaphors found in the poems themselves and various explanations found in the letters. As a result, his study throws new and significant light on one of the most imaginative poets in all English literature. Provocative in its analysis, it leaves the reader with a fresh perspective and renewed intellectual curiosity about Keats's poetry and poetics.Mario L. D'Avanzo is associate professor of English at Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island. He has published essays on Melville, and a number of articles in scholarly literary journals.We have made it easy for you to find a PDF Ebooks without any digging. And by having access to our ebooks online or by storing it on your computer, you have convenient answers with Keats's Metaphors for the Poetic Imagination. To get started finding Keats's Metaphors for the Poetic Imagination, you are right to find our website which has a comprehensive collection of manuals listed.
Our library is the biggest of these that have literally hundreds of thousands of different products represented.

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Keats's Metaphors for the Poetic Imagination

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