THE DOUBLE DREAM OF SPRING

by John Ashbery ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 16, 1969

John Ashbery is continuing a tradition of polished, hermetic verse in a poetry world frequently devoted to pop personalism and colloquial trivia. The looser, often rambling diction of his earlier works is leaner, denser, a tightening which leaves no room for flaws. Ashbery creates an impenetrable surface of enigmatic language, usually dazzling, although at times dandyish and even coy, which hints at emotional depth and anguish. He combines the elegant pyrotechnics of Edith Sitwell, the virtuoso sovereignty of Auden, and (although muted) the audacious images and verbal short circuits of French surrealism. Ashbery will probably not be fully appreciated for years to come: his craft is too difficult, his poetic universe too remote. He ignores the objective social and political realities and retreats into a private domain of self-contained artistry, in many ways a poet's poet. But this is a world of linguistic brilliance, draining the resources of the English language and widening the boundaries of modern poetry.

Pub Date: Jan. 16, 1969

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Dutton

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1969

Categories: NONFICTION