British Poetry 1900 to the Present - A-to-Z Entries, Introduction, Index

Sep 18, 2026

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Companion volume providing commentary on British poetry from 1900 to the present, designed for high school and college coursework. It explains how editors selected entries by drawing from textbooks and anthologies while also extending coverage toward unfairly neglected twentieth-century poets and broader contemporary voices. The introduction further justifies inclusion of poets writing in English across many regions and traditions, while excluding American poetry for pragmatic course alignment. The volume includes A-to-Z entries, appendixes with glossary, bibliography, contributors list, and a comprehensive index.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLiterature

FormatPDF

Pages577

Reading Time14 h 49 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

How to Use This Book

A-to-Z Entries

Appendixes

Glossary

Selected Bibliography

List of Contributors

Index

| THE FACTS ON FILE | | --- | | C O M P A N I O N T O | BRITISH POETRY 1900 TO THE PRESENT CD JAMES PERSOON ROBERT R. WATSON The Facts On File Companion to British Poetry, 1900 to the Present Copyright © 2009 by James Persoon and Robert R. Watson All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher. For information contact: Facts On File, Inc. An imprint of Infobase Publishing 132 West 31st Street New York NY 10001 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data The Facts on File companion to British poetry, 1900 to the present / [edited by] James Persoon, Robert R. Watson. [p. cm](p. cm).—(Companion to literature) The Facts on File companion to British poetry, 1900 to the present is part of a four-volume set on British poetry from the beginnings to the present. Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. ISBN-10: 0-8160-6406-7 ISBN-13: 978-0-8160-6406-9 (acid-free paper) I. English poetry—20th century. 2. English poetry—21st century. I. Persoon, James. II. Watson, Robert R. III. Facts on File, Inc. IV. Title: Companion to British poetry, 1900 to the present. V. Series. PR1225 .F29 2008 821'.909—dc22 2007047593 Facts On File books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk quantities for businesses, associations, institutions, or sales promotions. Please call our Special Sales Department in New York at (212) 967-8800 or (800) 322-8755. You can find Facts On File on the World Wide Web at [http://www.factsonfile.com](http://www.factsonfile.com) Text design adapted by Annie O’Donnell Cover design by Salvatore Luongo Printed in the United States of America VB Hermitage 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 This book is printed on acid-free paper and contains 30 percent postconsumer recycled content. CONTENTS CD INTRODUCTION v A-TO-Z ENTRIES 1 APPENDIXES I. GLOSSARY 534 II. SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 538 III. LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS 541 INDEX 544 68_BritishPoetry1900.indd iv 11/5/08 11:10: INTRODUCTION CD HOW TO USE THIS BOOK The Facts On File Companion to British Poetry, 1900 to the Present is the last volume in a four-volume set on British poetry from its beginnings to the present. Like other volumes in the series, this one aims to provide commentary on poets and individual poems likely tobe encountered by students in high school and college courses. To this end, the selection of entries was largely determined by combing through textbooks and anthologies. At the same time, we felt as editors and teachers that part of our duty was to expand the horizons of our readers—and perhaps expand the usefulness of this companion—beyond what is currently the most commonly taught. This process took the form of three approaches, which have added greatly to the length of this volume. The ﬁrst approach was to undertake a rescue mission of unfairly neglected poetry from the 20th century, especially the ﬁrst half. Canons of taste change, and some previously neglected poets, such as Charlotte Mew, Elizabeth Daryush, Frances Comford, Anna Wickham, and Sylvia Townsend Warner, have rapidly rising or recovering reputations, evidenced by newly available editions of their poetry, or by new inclusions in anthologies. Others were important to movements and groupings, such as Richard Aldington and Wyndham Lewis in the history of imagism, or such key Georgian poets as W. H. Davies and Walter de la Mare. Later poets, such as David Gascoyne, Basil Bunting, and Veronica ForrestThomson, are virtually unknown in American highschool and college textbooks but key ﬁgures in modernist poetics. Students or general readers who begin to explore beyond what they are initially introduced to will ﬁnd the entries on the lives and poems of these writers instructive and richly rewarding.

FAQs

What is the purpose of this companion volume on British poetry?

It offers commentary on poets and individual poems likely to be encountered in high school and college courses, while expanding readers’ horizons beyond the most commonly taught material.

How were entries selected for inclusion?

Selection was largely determined by consulting textbooks and anthologies, then expanded through additional editorial approaches, including rescue of neglected twentieth-century poetry and broader coverage of contemporary writers.

Why does the book include poets beyond what many readers would assume as “British,” and why exclude American poetry?

It includes poets from many English-writing communities because they share a linguistic community through English, while excluding American poetry follows the typical separation of American and English literature in many courses for pragmatic reasons.

Sep 18, 2026

Upload by Aurora