Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
This study discusses Adcock as a writer who draws on her experiences of dislocation in order to position herself between cultures. Contrasting her work with that of the post-war British poetic mainstream with which she has been associated, it emphasises that the radically displaced feminised
consciousness which negotiates the boundaries between self and other can be identified in Adcock's poetry as metonymic of resolving national and cultural differences. Wilson argues that displaced voices such as hers from white settler colonies like New Zealand now belong to multicultural Britain.
Her close readings of Adcock's verse in terms of its ironic double vision focus on the blend of classical restraint, wit, and humour, in relation to her complex revaluation of the diasporic imaginary of the exile. Claiming that Adcock's personal mythology, based on her divided nationality and
gendered consciousness, recalls writers like Jane Austen and her fellow expatriate, Katherine Mansfield, Wilson argues that the b
Synopsis
Discusses Adcock as a New Zealand poet who draws on her experiences of dislocation and divided loyalties, and relocates her work within the postwar British poetic mainstream. Wilson argues that although originating from a white settler colony such as New Zealand, Adcock's diasporic voice now belongs to a multicultural Britain. She offers close readings of Adcock's verse in terms of its ironic double vision and focusses on its blend of classical restraint, wit and humour that, she argues makes Adcock's voice one for our times. CONTENTS Acknowledgements Biographical Outline Abbreviations and References 1. Introduction: A Double Displacement 2. Early Influences: Two Hemispheres and the Divided Self 3. Home, Identity and Belonging: England 1963-1974 4. To and Fro: Living in Diaspora 5. Interrogation: Gender Issues 6. Crature, Journeys, Eco-Politics 7. Seeking the Ancestors 8. Conclusion Notes Select Biliography Appendix: Poems from 'The Eye of the Storm' Index 3. AUTHOR: Janet Wilson is Professor of English and Postcolonial Studies, University of Northampton.