Home as Metaphor: A Study in Contemporary American Poetry

This book proposes to highlight the study of contemporary American poetry with a close view to identify the configurations of the home as a metaphor. For convenience of the study, the poetry of only two female poets, the late Jane Kenyon and Tess Gallagher, and three male poets, Donald Hall, William Meredith and Louis Simpson, have been chosen The aim and objective of the study is to critically examine the poetry of these poets so as to discover in them how meaningful they intend to incorporate the metaphoric dimensions of the home. It would be authentic and purposeful from the study that each poet celebrates home as the specific as well as the central metaphor wherein lies the seeds of values like love, affection, human warmth and security. The book has seven chapters. The works of the five poets-Donald Hall, Jone Kenyon, Louis Sempson, William Meredith and Tess Gallagher-have been studied infive independent chapters. The introductory chapters tries to situate the concept of the home/family historically so as to give its genesis and its present condition. The concluding chapter is a summary of findings in which what are reiterated is the home-bound vision of the poets and the quest-motif of the poets.