Jane Kenyon Criticism
Jane Kenyon (1947-1995) was an esteemed American poet known for her introspective and observational poetry that utilized simple language to explore deep emotional themes, such as mortality, God, and the human condition. Her work is often compared to literary figures like John Keats and Emily Dickinson for its subtlety and verbal skill. As noted by Davis and Womack, Kenyon’s poetry finds grace in the inevitability of death and often reflects a serene acceptance of mortality.
Born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Kenyon earned her B.A. and M.A. in English from the University of Michigan. She married fellow poet Donald Hall and moved to New Hampshire, which greatly influenced her poetry. Her first collection, From Room to Room, captures her adjustment to her new surroundings, while later works like The Boat of Quiet Hours reflect her growing affinity for the New England landscape and her ongoing struggle with depression. Her translations of Anna Akhmatova reignited her poetic vision, as explored in Kenyon's Interview with Bradt.
Kenyon's later collections, such as Let Evening Come and Constance: Poems, delve into themes of faith and acceptance of mortality, often portraying a peaceful resolution to life's inevitable end, as discussed by Judith Harris. Her posthumous collection, Otherwise: New and Selected Poems, was compiled with her husband as she faced leukemia, featuring some of her most poignant reflections on happiness and loss. David Barber observed that while some poems in Constance: Poems show experimentation, others display significant poetic impact.
Critics uniformly praise Kenyon for her quiet yet powerful engagement with commonplace aspects of life, noting her ability to convey raw emotional depth without melodrama. Her work’s consistent exploration of death and dying is tempered by a sense of peace and optimism, as noted in reviews by Robert Richman. Kenyon's lasting influence is evident in her capacity to reflect the world with boldness and brilliance, leaving a profound impact on American poetry.
Contents
- Principal Works
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Essays
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Review of From Room to Room
(summary)
In the following review, Oktenberg expresses her approval of the simple, straightforward poems in Kenyon's From Room to Room.
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Review of The Boat of Quiet Hours
(summary)
In the following review, Gregerson commends Kenyon's form and control in the poems contained in The Boat of Quiet Hours. The beauty of repose is a beauty most of us may only fitfully emulate or wistfully, and from a distance, behold. It is the chief beauty of Jane Kenyon's poetry and the informing ground of her vocal and speculative range. She moves, in The Boat of Quiet Hours, through the articulate seasons of her New Hampshire home and through the many modulations of human affection, human grief, the ceremonies of loss and sustenance.
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Shape-Changing in Contemporary Poetry
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Unterecker notes the difference between Kenyon's first collection, From Room to Room, and her second, The Boat of Quiet Hours, concerning her feelings of belonging in her New England home and community. Unterecker also compares Kenyon's intellectual clarity with that of John Keats.
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Culture, Inclusion, Craft
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Baker laments that, aside from a handful of quality poems, most of the verse in Let Evening Come is terse and redundant—which he finds disappointing, considering the quality of Kenyon's previously published poems.
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Jane Kenyon: An Interview
(summary)
In the following interview, Kenyon and Bradt explore the interplay of art and politics, the societal importance of arts education, the role of poetry and poets, and Kenyon's personal experiences with poetry creation, highlighting her commitment to public engagement and her reflections on the influence of solitude and nature in her work.
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Review of Constance: Poems
(summary)
In the following review, Barber contends that some of the poems in Constance: Poems feel as if Kenyon is experimenting with, and not quite perfecting, poetry with a larger scope than that of her previous works. Barber observes, however, that other poems in this collection are extremely well written and have strong poetic and emotional impact.
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Above an Abyss
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Gordon comments on the various tones and subjects in Otherwise: New and Selected Poems.
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Luminous Particulars
(summary)
In the following essay, Richman explains that Kenyon's poems are difficult to categorize because her poetry contains unexpected elements. Richman also compares Kenyon's poetry writing with Chekhov's prose.
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In Solitude and Sorrow
(summary)
In the following review, Oktenberg contemplates the beauty, simplicity, and expertise of Kenyon's poetry and discusses the recurring themes in Otherwise: New and Selected Poems.
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Review of Otherwise: New and Selected Poems
(summary)
In the following review, Cookson purports that the genius of the simple poems in Otherwise: New and Selected Poems is Kenyon's spark of imagination and her ability to convey the inspiration of their creation with skillfully chosen words.
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Four and a Half Books
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Breslin details the evolution of Kenyon's poems from From Room to Room to Otherwise: New and Selected Poems. Breslin sadly notes the irony that Kenyon was just beginning to expand and mature creatively at the time of her death.
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A Government of Two
(summary)
In the following essay, McNair explores Kenyon's relationship with her husband, Donald Hall, and underscores the overt and the subconscious influences they had on each other's work.
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Review of Otherwise: New and Selected Poems
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Merritt analyzes the poems collected in Otherwise: New and Selected Poems and notes Kenyon's preoccupation with death and dying. However, Merritt asserts, this morbidity is tempered by Kenyon's reverence for the common, everyday realities that make up human existence.
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Jane Kenyon's ‘Manners Toward God’: Gratitude and the ‘Anti-Urge’
(summary)
In the following essay, Breslin explores Kenyon's poem “Having It Out with Melancholy” and investigates the levels and different definitions of the melancholia depicted in the poem.
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Vision, Voice, and Soul-Making in ‘Let Evening Come’
(summary)
In the following essay, Harris lauds the serenity in the face of an inevitable death, and the calm assurances of solace in Kenyon's poem, “Let Evening Come.”
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Settling into the Light: The Ethics of Grace in the Poetry of Jane Kenyon
(summary)
In the following essay, Davis and Womack center on the often-repeated theme of mortality in Kenyon's poems. The critics contend that while Kenyon does face mortality with trepidation, her poems on the subject are gracefully tempered with gratitude for life—however fleeting—and peaceful contemplation of the life to come.
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Food as Sacrament in the Poetry of Jane Kenyon
(summary)
In the following essay, Hostetler studies the many references to food and hunger in Kenyon's work. Hostetler notes that Kenyon often uses food imagery to symbolize sustenance—actual food for the body and metaphorical nourishment for the soul.
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Affective Disorders: The Treatment of Emotion in Jane Kenyon's Poetry
(summary)
In the following essay, Spirko examines the techniques Kenyon uses to express and control emotion in her poetry.
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Otherwise: Old and New Poems
(summary)
In the following essay, Timmerman observes the poignancy of the poems in Otherwise: New and Selected Poems and analyzes works from her earlier volumes and previously uncollected writings that were not included in this collection.
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Review of From Room to Room
(summary)
- Further Reading