On Seamus Heaney

R. F. Foster provides an insightful and eloquent account of the poet and his work against the background of a changing Ireland in his book "On Seamus Heaney." Heaney's poetry is characterized by a deliberate evasiveness and creative ambiguity, and he evoked a disappearing rural Ireland haunted by political violence. Foster also discusses Heaney's cosmopolitanism, support for dissident poets abroad, and his focus on death and spiritual transcendence. Heaney created an extraordinary connection with a wide readership, giving him authority and power unique among contemporary writers.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 248 pages
Publication date: 28 June 2022
Publisher: Princeton University Press

The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Seamus Heaney, the most significant Irish poet of the postwar period, in 1995 as his home country of Northern Ireland descended into sectarian conflict. At a time when nationality was fiercely debated, Heaney also gained widespread recognition, culminating in the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1995. R. F. Foster, a prominent Irish historian and literary critic, provides an insightful and eloquent account of the poet and his work in the context of a changing Ireland in his book On Seamus Heaney. Foster offers illuminating and personal interpretations of Heaney's work by drawing on unpublished drafts and correspondence. Despite his charismatic personality, Heaney refused to assume the role of a public spokesperson, and Foster identifies a deliberate evasiveness and creative ambiguity in his poetry. In this, and in Heaney's portrayal of a disappearing rural Ireland haunted by political violence, Foster finds parallels with the other towering figure of Irish poetry, W. B. Yeats. Foster also discusses Heaney's cosmopolitanism, his support for dissident poets abroad, and his increasing focus in his later work on death and spiritual transcendence. Above all, Foster examines how Heaney created an extraordinary connection with an exceptionally wide readership, giving him an authority and power unique among contemporary writers. Combining a vivid account of Heaney's life and a compelling reading of his entire oeuvre, On Seamus Heaney extends our understanding of the man as it enriches our appreciation of his poetry.

Weight: 184g
Dimension: 112 x 181 x 36 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780691234045