Lunacy of Light
Emily Dickinson and the Experience of Metaphor
Wendy Barker(Author)
Southern Illinois University Press
Will be published approx. on 1. January 1991
Book
Paperback/Softback
232 pages
978-0-8093-1707-3 (ISBN)
Description
Reviews / Votes
"Barker's graceful and often dramatic prose vividly depicts Dickinson's poetic vision. . . . Astute and sensitive interpretations."-Wendy Martin, Signs "Deft and persuasive. . . . Lunacy of Light is an admirable addition to recent studies of Dickinson by feminist critics. It is feminist criticism of the non-castrating kind. It doesn't warp the poems to fit a dogma or an ideology. At the same time, one finishes the book agreeing with Barker that Dickinson's handling of light and dark metaphors shows how acutely conscious she was of her alienation from the 'values and practices' of her culture."-William G. Heath, New England Quarterly"Barker authoritatively surveys . . . the use of light and dark imagery in the literature of Western culture, showing that traditionally light has been associated with male power, energy, reason, and God, and dark has traditionally been associated with woman, death, chaos, and Satan. . . . Soundly argued and well documented."-P. J. Ferlazzo, Choice
'"Wonderfully lucid, and as richly fluent in the realm of functional symbolism as is Dickinson herself, Lunacy of Light should become a source of major enlightenment for future scholars intent on seeking out the intellectual delights amid the sensual riches of this most misunderstood poet."-Bryce Milligan, San Antonio Light
"Knowledgeable, informative, and as witty as she is thorough. . . . By focusing on how she manipulates common metaphors, Barker shows how Dickinson's poems work as a critique of culture and an assertion of women's different sort of strength."-Martha Nell Smith, Women's Review of Books
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Carbondale
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 140 mm
Thickness: 16 mm
ISBN-13
978-0-8093-1707-3 (9780809317073)
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Schweitzer Classification
Person
Wendy Barker, associate professor of English at the University of Texas at San Antonio and winner of the Ithaca House Poetry Series Competition for 1990, recently published two collections of poems: Let the Ice Speak and Winter Chickens.