You Are Here: Essays on the Art of Poetry in CanadaNorthrop Frye wrote that for Canadian poets the question of identity isn’t so much ‘Who am I?’ as ‘Where is here?’ In his ground-breaking book, James Pollock gives his answer: that where we are as a literary culture has a great deal to do with our relationship to elsewhere. For far too long, Canadians have refused to read our poetry in the larger international context of poetry as an art, leaving our poets isolated and ignored. Pollock sets out to situate our verse on the map of world poetry – a map which, like one of those incomplete globes from the sixteenth century, still leaves Canada largely uncharted. Acutely intelligent and unflinchingly honest in its judgements, You Are Here is an eye-opening guide to the new world of Canadian poetry, sensitively exploring the work of such poets as Anne Carson, Daryl Hine, Jeffery Donaldson, Karen Solie and Eric Ormsby. The collection ends with a witty treatise on good criticism, and a passionate and learned reconsideration of poetic values, making You Are Here an essential companion for students and lovers of Canadian poetry everywhere. |
Contents
11 | |
17 | |
Cursing with a Broken Art | 29 |
Anne Carson and the Sublime | 43 |
The Magic of Jeffery Donaldson | 59 |
What to Pack | 77 |
Sympathetic Magicand the Chameleon Poet | 107 |
Critical Mess | 139 |
Book of Revelations | 149 |
Still Outin Left Field | 157 |
Choosing the Best Canadian Poetry | 171 |
Long Time Coming | 177 |
A SelfInterview | 189 |
The Art of Poetry | 201 |