The Cambridge Companion to W. H. Auden

A comprehensive and authoritative guide to Auden's work.

Stan Smith (Edited by)

9780521536479, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 13 January 2005

288 pages
22.8 x 15.2 x 2.6 cm, 0.46 kg

'… the book should be on the shelves of all libraries collecting in the areas of Anglo-American relations, literature, drama, and 20th century social and political history.' Reference Reviews

This volume brings together specially commissioned essays by some of the world's leading experts on the life and work of W. H. Auden, one of the major English-speaking poets of the twentieth century. The volume's contributors include a prize-winning poet, Auden's literary executor and editor, and his most recent, widely acclaimed biographer. It offers fresh perspectives on his work from Auden critics, alongside specialists from such diverse fields as drama, ecological and travel studies. It provides scholars, students and general readers with a comprehensive and authoritative account of Auden's life and works in clear and accessible English. Besides providing authoritative accounts of the key moments and dominant themes of his poetic development, the Companion examines his language, style and formal innovation, his prose and critical writing and his ideas about sexuality, religion, psychoanalysis, politics, landscape, ecology, and globalisation. It also contains a comprehensive bibliography of writings about Auden.

List of contributors
List of abbreviations and textual note
Chronology of Auden's life and works Stan Smith
1. Introduction Stan Smith
2. Auden's life and character Richard Davenport-Hines
3. Auden's England Patrick Deane
4. Auden in America Nicholas Jenkins
5. The European Auden Edward Mendelson
6. Auden's travel writings Tim Youngs
7. Auden's plays and dramatic writings: theatre, film and opera Christopher Innes
8. Auden's light and serio-comic verse Stan Smith
9. Auden's prose Tony Sharpe
10. Auden's English: language and style Peter Porter
11. Auden and modern theory John R. Boly
12. Auden's politics: power, authority and the individual John Lucas
13. Auden, psychology and society Rod Mengham
14. Auden: love, sexuality, desire Richard R. Bozorth
15. Auden and religion Gareth Reeves
16. Auden's landscapes Paola Marchetti
17. Auden and ecology Rainer Emig
18. Auden and influence Ian Sansom
19. Bibliographic essay and review of Auden studies Nadia Herman Colburn
Index.

Subject Areas: Literary studies: poetry & poets [DSC]