Tony Harrison

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how although Tony Harrison?s poems have individual themes, relating to personal emotions and experiences, in particular to his upbringing and background, the overriding theme throughout nearly all of his poetry is conflict. It provides a brief biography of his life and a review of some of his poems such as "Lines to my Grandfathers" and "Kumquat for John Keats".

From the Paper:

"This idea of conflict working in relation to unity is one which Harrison has considered carefully in many of his pieces, particularly in relation to the family in which he was brought up. Harrison is very much a contradiction to the stereotype (and indeed the reality) of his roots. He comes from Leeds and a very working class family. At a young age he won a scholarship to Leeds Grammar School where he specialised in classics, this was an entirely unprecedented event in his family. His father is quoted as saying, in the poem A Good Read, ?ah sometimes think you read too many books. ah nivver "ad much time for a good read". This is a clear contradiction between himself and his father, Harrison also sees himself as the one in the right, putting down his fathers words by starting the sentences with lower case letters."

More papers on Tony Harrison:

• Analytical Essay # 51632 : "Tony Harrison"
• Poem Review # 45841 : "Them" and "Uz"
• Descriptive Essay # 104876 : "Struggle and Oppression in Nineteenth Century Literature"

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