Hearing Things

The Work of Sound in Literature

Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism, Poetry History & Criticism, British
Cover of the book Hearing Things by Angela Leighton, Harvard University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Angela Leighton ISBN: 9780674985346
Publisher: Harvard University Press Publication: May 1, 2018
Imprint: Harvard University Press Language: English
Author: Angela Leighton
ISBN: 9780674985346
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Publication: May 1, 2018
Imprint: Harvard University Press
Language: English

Hearing Things is a meditation on sound’s work in literature. Drawing on critical works and the commentaries of many poets and novelists who have paid close attention to the role of the ear in writing and reading, Angela Leighton offers a reconsideration of literature itself as an exercise in hearing. An established critic and poet, Leighton explains how we listen to the printed word, while showing how writers use the expressivity of sound on the silent page. Although her focus is largely on poets—Alfred Tennyson, W. B. Yeats, Robert Frost, Walter de la Mare, Wallace Stevens, Elizabeth Bishop, Jorie Graham, and Alice Oswald—Leighton’s scope includes novels, letters, and philosophical writings as well. Her argument is grounded in the specificity of the text under discussion, but one important message emerges from the whole: literature by its very nature commands listening, and listening is a form of understanding that has often been overlooked. Hearing Things offers a renewed call for the kind of criticism that, avoiding the programmatic or purely ideological, remains alert to the work of sound in every literary text.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Hearing Things is a meditation on sound’s work in literature. Drawing on critical works and the commentaries of many poets and novelists who have paid close attention to the role of the ear in writing and reading, Angela Leighton offers a reconsideration of literature itself as an exercise in hearing. An established critic and poet, Leighton explains how we listen to the printed word, while showing how writers use the expressivity of sound on the silent page. Although her focus is largely on poets—Alfred Tennyson, W. B. Yeats, Robert Frost, Walter de la Mare, Wallace Stevens, Elizabeth Bishop, Jorie Graham, and Alice Oswald—Leighton’s scope includes novels, letters, and philosophical writings as well. Her argument is grounded in the specificity of the text under discussion, but one important message emerges from the whole: literature by its very nature commands listening, and listening is a form of understanding that has often been overlooked. Hearing Things offers a renewed call for the kind of criticism that, avoiding the programmatic or purely ideological, remains alert to the work of sound in every literary text.

More books from Harvard University Press

Cover of the book From Enemy to Brother by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book The Accidental Mind by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book Family Trees by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book MAKING CONTACT by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book The Harm in Hate Speech by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book Governing Behavior by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book The Animal Game by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book History of Modern Russia by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book Ugly Feelings by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book Leftism Reinvented by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book The Rise and Fall of Arab Presidents for Life by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book Beckett’s Art of Mismaking by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book Torpedo by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book Shantytown, USA by Angela Leighton
Cover of the book The Assumptions Economists Make by Angela Leighton
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy