The twentieth century in poetry : a critical survey

The Twentieth Century in Poetry examines both 'English' poetry through the events of the twentieth century and British history through its representations in recent poetry.

It builds a narrative not of poetry in the twentieth century but of the twentieth century in poetry.

A high proportion of literature courses include an exploration of the issues of gender, ethnicity, theory, nationality, politics and social class.

But until now most teaching has focused on the novel as the most useful way of raising these issues.

In The Twentieth Century in Poetry Peter Childs demonstrates that all poetry is historically produced and consumed and is part of our understanding of society and identity.

This student-friendly critical survey includes chapters on: the Georgians First World War poetry Eliot Yeats the thirties post-war poetry contemporary anthologies women's poetry Northern Irish and black British poets Placing literature in a wider social context, this book is a fascinating examination of the way in which recent theory has questioned divisions between 'history' and literature, between 'text' and 'event', between society and the individual.