Acceptable Words : Essays on the Poetry of Geoffrey Hill

This is the most comprehensive and up-to-date critical work on Geoffrey Hill, covering all his work up to __Scenes from Comus__ (2005), as well as some poems yet to appear in book form. It aims to contribute something to the understanding of his poetry among those who have followed it for many years and students and other readers encountering this major poet for the first time. Geoffrey Hill Has Said That Some Great Poetry 'recognises That Words Fail Us'. These Essays Explore Hill's Struggle Over Fifty Years With The Recalcitrance Of Language. He Is A Poet Of Phenomenal Verbal Power Who Knows The Dangers Of Indulging Such Power. His Poetry Draws To Light The Greatest Intimacies And The Most Stunning And Fleeting Of His Apprehensions. It Is Also Public In Its Contemplation Of Ethics, History And Politics. His Ear For Public Discourse Ranges From Seventeenth-century Politics And Theology To The Nightly News And The Celebrity-spread. This Book Seeks To Show How All His Work Is Marked By The Quest For The Right Pitch Of Utterance, Whether It Is Sorrowing, Angry, Satiric Or Erotic. It Shows How Hill's Words Are Never Lightly 'acceptable' But An Ethical Act; How He Seeks Out Words He Can Stand By - Words That Are 'getting It Right'. This Book Is The Most Comprehensive And Up-to-date Critical Work On Geoffrey Hill Yet To Appear. It Aims To Contribute Something To The Understanding Of His Poetry Among Those Who Have Followed It For Many Years And Students And Other Readers Encountering This Major Poet For The First Time.--jacket. 1. 'acceptable Words' -- 2. 'the Speechless Dead' : King Log (1968) -- 3. Poet, Lover, Liar : 'lachrimae' (1975) -- 4. 'our Love Is What We Love To Have' : Tenebrae (1978) -- 5. Things And Words : The Mystery Of The Charity Of Charles Peguy (1983) -- 6. History As Poetry : 'churchill's Funeral' And 'de Jure Belli Ac Pacis' (canaan, 1996) -- 7. The Triumph Of Love (1998) -- 8. 'beauty Is Difficult' : Speech! Speech! (2000) -- 9. 'here And There I Pull A Flower' : The Orchards Of Syon (2002) -- 10. 'in Wintry Solstice Like The Shorten'd Light' : Scenes From Comus (2005) -- 11. Afterword : ' I Have Not Finished '. Jeffrey Wainwright. Includes Bibliographical References (p.[144]-147) And Index. Geoffrey Hill has said that some great poetry 'recognises that words fail us'. These essays explore Hill's struggle over fifty years with the recalcitrance of language. This book seeks to show how all his work is marked by the quest for the right pitch of utterance whether it is sorrowing, angry, satiric or erotic. It shows how Hill's words are never lightly 'acceptable' but an ethical act, how he seeks out words he can stand by - words that are 'getting it right'. This book is the most comprehensive and up-to-date critical work on Geoffrey Hill so far, covering all his work up to 'Scenes from Comus' (2005), as well as some poems yet to appear in book form. It aims to contribute something to the understanding of his poetry among those who have followed it for many years and students and other readers encountering this major poet for the first time This collection of essays offers detailed readings of many poems, covering all of Hill's volumes up to 'Scenes from Comus' (2005). It also examines several poems yet to be made available in published form, and covers Hill's late burst of creativity in the six volumes of verse published since 1996