Suddenness and the Composition of Poetic Thought

This book explores how poets think while writing,using cognitive tradition,performance theory,and philosophy to examine the brief,creative window of conscious attention. It reveals that "it is not we,but a certain condition of ours which knows," and discusses the links between poetic composition and live performative thinking in the context of the Ancient Greeks.

Format: Hardback
Length: 264 pages
Publication date: 20 April 2022
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Interrogating the much-celebrated concept of "poetic thinking," this book delves into the depths of how poets conceive their works during the creative process. Drawing upon findings from the cognitive tradition, it employs performance theory and philosophy to explore this fleeting yet profound window of conscious attention. Through the lens of suddenness and the composition of poetic thought, the book uncovers the profound implications of this limited perspective on consciousness on the poems and other texts we compose. Henrich von Kleist's assertion that "it is not we, but a certain condition of ours which knows" takes center stage in this analysis of the thinking we engage in during the very moments of composition.

In addition to analyzing the thought processes of renowned Anglophone poets, the book offers a clear and insightful account of the interconnectedness between poetic composition and live performative thinking within the context of the early (pre)textual history of the Ancient Greeks. This transdisciplinary study encompasses philosophy, cognitive psychology, literary studies, and linguistics, aiming to reconceptualize the origins of new thought in poems and enhance our understanding of the intricate yet essential relationship between thinking and the moment of utterance.

Weight: 567g
Dimension: 227 x 160 x 26 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781538153529