Lawrence Durrell's Poetry: A Rift in the Fabric of the World

This book provides an in-depth analysis of Lawrence Durrell's entire poetic opus, from his early collections in the 1940s to his last one published in 1973. It reveals the genesis of his writing, linking it to his novels and residence books, and demonstrates why he must be read as the heir to the greatest English romantic poets and French symbolists and modernists. The comparative approach opens up a new perspective on Durrell, highlighting his complex literary strategies and the ontological quest of a writer who sought to create a life-world.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 338 pages
Publication date: 15 May 2023
Publisher: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press

This comprehensive book delves into the entire poetic oeuvre of Lawrence Durrell,spanning from his early collections in the 1940s to his final publication in 1973. Thirty years of Durrellian poetry are meticulously compiled to unveil the genesis of Durrell's writing, both poetic and fictional, while drawing connections to his novels and residence books, which he continued to write concurrently. Consequently, Durrell emerges as one of the preeminent late modernist poets whose literary and epistemological explorations must be understood within the context of a global network of literary brotherhoods, including T.S. Eliot, Michael Fraenkel, Henry Miller, and David Gascoyne.

At the same time, this book demonstrates why Durrell must also be regarded as the heir to the greatest English romantic poets (Byron, Shelley, Keats, and Wordsworth) as well as to the French symbolists and modernists (from Baudelaire to Nerval, Valéry, and Cendrars). This comparative approach offers a fresh perspective on Durrell that has yet to be explored by North American and English scholarship. The symbolic patterns, stylistic devices, and aesthetic and philosophic principles that define Durrell's poetics necessitate a back-and-forth reading that connects prose and poetry, fiction and lyricism, description and abstraction. Poetry excerpts, extracts from his residence books, novels, and essays showcase not only Durrell's intricate literary strategies but also the ontological quest of a writer who, despite never feeling at home in the world he inhabited, tirelessly endeavored to create a life-world, known as the "Umwelt" in semiological terms.

Weight: 512g
Dimension: 151 x 229 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781683930648