Ted Hughes: Environmentalist and Ecopoet

Description

This book is the first book devoted entirely to Hughes as an environmental activist and writer. Drawing on the rapidly-growing interest in poetry and the environment, the book deploys insights from ecopoetics, ecocriticism and Anthropocene studies to analyse how Hughes’s poetry reflects his environmental awareness. Hughes’s understanding of environmental issues is placed within the context of twentieth-century developments in ‘green’ ideology and politics, challenging earlier scholars who have seen his work as apolitical. The unique strengths of this book lie in its combination of cutting-edge insights on ecocriticism with extensive work on the British Library’s new Ted Hughes archive. It will appeal to readers who enjoy Hughes’s work, as well as students and academics. Front Matter ....Pages i-xi Introduction (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 1-19 Hughes, Ecocriticism and Ecopoetry (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 21-55 From Mytholmroyd to Mexborough: Origins of Hughes’s Environmental Awareness (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 57-72 ‘Long Live the Weeds and the Wilderness’: Hughes’s ‘Green’ Literary Influences (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 73-103 Animal Agency, America and Early Environmental Views (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 105-148 The Environmental Revolution (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 149-183 Hughes’s Farming (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 185-211 ‘Join Water’: Hughes’s River-Poetry (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 213-244 Green Laureate (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 245-267 Global Environmentalism (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 269-287 Hunting, Shooting, Fishing—and Conservation? (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 289-312 Conclusion (Yvonne Reddick)....Pages 313-317 Back Matter ....Pages 319-343