The weekend just passed - I watched BBC4 tv programme:
"The Greatest Poem of World War One: David Jones's In Parenthesis".
I had not heard of this poem so I was intrigued and I was very well rewarded.
David Jones was born in London in 1895, to a Welsh father and English mother. He attended art school from age 14.
In 1914 he joined the London Welsh infantry regiment. He was wounded at Mametz Wood during the Battle of the Somme.
After the war he returned to art, working at the Eric Gill studio. In the early thirties Jones started to write the poem. It took four years to finish and was lauded as the greatest poem by other poets such as T S Elliot. It is in seven parts, it looks extremely long and complex and requires "close reading".
This is a great one hour programme about an artist and poet I did not know and about a piece of literature of which I knew nothing. If you can, I recommend you watch it.
All images found on Google Images; I would like to thank anyone who has posted the pictures.
I've been a fan of his for ages. Have you read his biography and a recently published "The art of David Jones-vision and memory" by Ariane Banks and Paul Hills?
ReplyDeleteA really important man so often forgotten.Thanks for mentioning him here.
P.s just watched the programme on iplayer,it was most moving and interesting.
ReplyDeleteAlan