The Redress of Poetry (Magill’s Literary Annual 1991-2005)
At a glance:
- Author: Seamus Heaney
- First Published: 1995
- Type of Work: Literary criticism
- Genres: Criticism, Nonfiction
- Subjects: Literature, Poetry or poets, Death or dying, Lectures or lecturing, Poetics
The Redress of Poetry had its origin in fifteen lectures that Seamus Heaney delivered in his role as professor of poetry at the University of Oxford from 1989 to 1994. Ten of the lectures are reprinted in the book, which is both a defense of poetry and an analysis of poets ranging from Christopher Marlowe in the sixteenth century to Elizabeth Bishop in the twentieth century.
The introduction to the book gives a context for the various ways Heaney will discover that poetry provides a “redress” or relief to the reader. For example, he cites a late poem by Robert Frost...
[The entire page is 2064 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
See Also
