From one of today''s most distinguished critics, a beautifully written exploration of one of the twentieth century''s most important literary critics
Are literary critics writers? As Michael Wood says, "Not all critics are writersâ"perhaps most of them are notâ"and some of them are better when they don''t try to be." The British critic and poet William Empson (1906â"84), one of the most important and influential critics of the twentieth century, was an exceptionâ"a critic who was not only a writer but also a great one. In this brief book, Wood, himself one of the most gifted writers among contemporary critics, explores Empson as a writer, a distinguished poet whose criticism is a brilliant literary performanceâ"and proof that the act of reading can be an unforgettable adventure.
Drawing out the singularity and strength of Empson''s writing, including its unfailing wit, Wood traces the connections between Empson''s poetry and criticism from his first and best-known critical works, Seven Types of Ambiguity and Some Versions of Pastoral, to later books such as Milton''s God and The Structure of Complex Words. Wood shows why this pioneer of close reading was both more and less than the inventor of New Criticismâ"more because he was the greatest English critic since Coleridge, and didn''t belong to any school; and less because he had severe differences with many contemporary critics, especially those who dismissed the importance of an author''s intentions.
Beautifully written and rich with insight, On Empson is an elegant introduction to a unique writer for whom literature was a nonstop form of living.
Industry Reviews
"A brilliant introduction to one of the most original and beguiling intellects of the 20th century."--Michael Dirda, Washington Post "An elegant and concise study of the great British literary critic William Empson (1906-1984)... If we come away with one thing from On Empson, it is the reminder, in the age of STEM courses, of just how much poetry matters--matters not on ethical or political grounds but simply for its own sake, for its exposure of the possibilities of the language that we use every waking moment of every day without taking into account its astonishing possibilities for knowledge, power, and, especially, pleasure."--Marjorie Perloff, Weekly Standard "Part of the dexterity of Wood's own critical idiom lies in using the resources of the colloquial register to say just enough, leaving us to complete and digest the thought. His stylish brevity avoids the dogmatising implicit in all attempts to turn an observation into a theory ... Wood even manages to make Milton's God (1961), Empson's grumpiest, most obsessive book, seem attractive ... An appropriately subtle yet spirited introduction to the seductive power of a particular form of literary criticism."--Stefan Collini, The Guardian
