Hearing Things : The Work of Sound in Literature

Hearing Things Is A Meditation On Sound's Work In Literature. Drawing On The Writings Of Critics And Philosophers But Especially On The Comments Of Many Poets And Novelists Who Have Pointed To The Role Of The Ear In Writing And Reading, It Offers A Reconsideration Of Literature Itself As An Exercise In Hearing Things. Ranging From Alfred Tennyson To Alice Oswald, Virginia Woolf To Marilynne Robinson, Walter De La Mare To Les Murray, Angela Leighton Examines Various Ways Of Listening To The Printed Word, While Examining How Writers Themselves Manage The Expressivity Of Sound In Their Silent Writings. Although Her Focus Is On Poets From The Nineteenth To The Twenty-first Centuries--alfred Tennyson, W. B. Yeats, Walter De La Mare, Robert Frost, Wallace Stevens, Elizabeth Bishop, Les Murray, Jorie Graham, And Anne Stevenson--leighton Expands Her Scope To Include Letter Writing, Rhythm, And The Difficult Relationship Between Philosophical And Literary Texts. While Her Larger Argument Is Always Answerable To The Specifics Of The Writer Under Discussion, One Clear Message Emerges From The Whole: Literature By Its Very Nature Commands Listening, And Listening Is A Form Of Cognitive Attention That Has Often Been Overlooked.-- Sound's Work: An Introduction -- Listening Thresholds -- Tennyson's Hum -- Humming Tennyson: Christina Rossetti And Virginia Woolf -- Pennies And Horse-play: W. B. Yeats's Recalls -- Coo-ee: Calling Walter De La Mare, Edward Thomas, Robert Frost -- A Book, A Face, A Phantom: Walter De La Mare's The Green Room -- Hearing Something: Robert Frost, Elizabeth Bishop, Jorie Graham -- Wherever You Listen From: W. S. Graham's Art Of The Letter -- Incarnations In The Ear: Hearing Presence In Les Murray -- Justifying Time In Ticks And Tocks -- Poetry's Knowing: So What Do We Know?. Angela Leighton. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Hearing Things is a meditation on sound's work in literature. Drawing on the writings of critics and philosophers but especially on the comments of many poets and novelists who have pointed to the role of the ear in writing and reading, it offers a reconsideration of literature itself as an exercise in hearing things. Ranging from Alfred Tennyson to Alice Oswald, Virginia Woolf to Marilynne Robinson, Walter de la Mare to Les Murray, Angela Leighton examines various ways of listening to the printed word, while examining how writers themselves manage the expressivity of sound in their silent writings. Although her focus is on poets from the nineteenth to the twenty-first centuries--Alfred Tennyson, W. B. Yeats, Walter de la Mare, Robert Frost, Wallace Stevens, Elizabeth Bishop, Les Murray, Jorie Graham, and Anne Stevenson--Leighton expands her scope to include letter writing, rhythm, and the difficult relationship between philosophical and literary texts. While her larger argument is always answerable to the specifics of the writer under discussion, one clear message emerges from the whole: literature by its very nature commands listening, and listening is a form of cognitive attention that has often been overlooked.-- Provided by publisher Hearing Things is a meditation on sound's work in literature. Drawing on critical works and the commentaries of many poets and novelists who have paid close attention to the role of the ear in writing and reading, Angela Leighton offers a reconsideration of literature itself as an exercise in hearing.An established critic and poet, Leighton explains how we listen to the printed word, while showing how writers use the expressivity of sound on the silent page. Although her focus is largely on poets—Alfred Tennyson, W. B. Yeats, Robert Frost, Walter de la Mare, Wallace Stevens, Elizabeth Bishop, Jorie Graham, and Alice Oswald—Leighton's scope includes novels, letters, and philosophical writings as well. Her argument is grounded in the specificity of the text under discussion, but one important message emerges from the whole: literature by its very nature commands listening, and listening is a form of understanding that has often been overlooked. Hearing Things offers a renewed call for the kind of criticism that, avoiding the programmatic or purely ideological, remains alert to the work of sound in every literary text. Hearing Things is a meditation on sounds work in literature. Drawing on critical works and the commentaries of many poets and novelists who have paid close attention to the role of the ear in writing and reading, Angela Leighton offers a reconsideration of literature itself as an exercise in hearing. An established critic and poet, Leighton explains how we listen to the printed word, while showing how writers use the expressivity of sound on the silent page. Although her focus is largely on poetsAlfred Tennyson, W. B. Yeats, Robert Frost, Walter de la Mare, Wallace Stevens, Elizabeth Bishop, Jorie Graham, and Alice OswaldLeightons scope includes novels, letters, and philosophical writings as well. Her argument is grounded in the specificity of the text under discussion, but one important message emerges from the literature by its very nature commands listening, and listening is a form of understanding that has often been overlooked. Hearing Things offers a renewed call for the kind of criticism that, avoiding the programmatic or purely ideological, remains alert to the work of sound in every literary text. Cover -- Title Page -- Copyright -- Contents -- Sound's Work: An Introduction -- 1. Listening Thresholds -- 2. Tennyson's Hum -- 3. Humming Tennyson: Christina Rossetti and Virginia Woolf -- 4. Pennies and Horseplay: W. B. Yeats's Recalls -- 5. "Coo-ee": Calling Walter de la Mare, Edward Thomas, Robert Frost -- 6. A Book, a Face, a Phantom: Walter de la Mare's "The Green Room" -- 7. Hearing Something: Robert Frost, Elizabeth Bishop, Jorie Graham -- 8. "Wherever You Listen From": W. S. Graham's Art of the Letter -- 9. Incarnations in the Ear: Hearing Presence in Les Murray -- 10. Justifying Time in Ticks and Tocks -- 11. Poetry's Knowing: So What Do We Know? -- Bibliography -- Acknowledgments -- Index Drawing on the writings of critics and philosophers and on the comments of poets and novelists who have pointed to the role of the ear in writing and reading, Angela Leighton offers a reconsideration of literature as an exercise in hearing things, and renews a call for criticism that is creatively attentive to sound’s work in every literary text.