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This Thesis Has Been Submitted in Fulfilment of the Requirements for a Postgraduate Degree (E.G This thesis has been submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for a postgraduate degree (e.g. PhD, MPhil, DClinPsychol) at the University of Edinburgh. Please note the following terms and conditions of use: This work is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, which are retained by the thesis author, unless otherwise stated. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author. When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. 1 The Place of the Poet: An Examination of the Evocation of Space and Place in the Oeuvre of Philip Larkin Alexander Josef Howard PhD English Literature The University of Edinburgh 2018 2 3 Abstract This thesis attempts to recalibrate some of the critical coordinates of recent discussions of Larkin’s writing by reconsidering the treatment of space and place in his work. It claims, broadly, that Larkin treated ‘place’ and ‘space’ as two separate tropic entities: the former relating primarily to geographical location and responsive to a vast catalogue of attendant symbolisms and styles; and the latter, a more notional concept, which frequently drew inspiration from the adjacent intellectual fields of fine art, political philosophy and grammatical deixis. In exploring Larkin’s space- and place- making techniques, the thesis argues that the poet demonstrated a receptiveness towards, or actively called upon, notions and styles that were contemporary and predated his compositional timeframe. Among these earlier influences, the thesis places a key focus on the poetics of Pope, Wordsworth, Collins and Dickens whose varied approaches to the poetics of place are deemed to be greatly influential upon the Larkin canon. In so doing, the thesis broaches the possibility that Larkin’s variously-sought techniques for place- and space-making might betray certain allegiances in the poet himself that have hitherto been unexplored. Principal among these are the poet’s receptivity towards Christian faith, the geometry of surrealist art, and the organisational principles of the panopticon. In the introduction, the thesis attempts to diagnose a number of speculative issues that may have obstructed, or obfuscated, the literary critique of place and space in recent years. Consequently, the introduction attempts to establish a normative understanding of both ‘space’ and ‘place’ with which to approach Larkin’s work. Chapters one and two deal with Larkin’s early work; his novel Jill and his ‘Dream Diaries’. Chapter one argues that Larkin was inspired by a lecture series on Ruskinian artists which, in turn, coloured the behaviour and settings within Jill. Chapter two posits that the ‘Dream Diaries’ were among Larkin’s first attempts at space-making with several entries existing as heuristic-style experiments in their own right. Chapters three and four explore Larkin’s understanding of ‘elsewhere’ with the former focusing on Larkin’s “mental journeys”, while the latter considers A Girl in Winter and its protagonist’s cognition of unknown geographies. Finally, chapters five and six explore Larkin’s depiction of death and the afterlife through space and place, suggesting that in High Windows, these concepts can be split into two subcategories: instants in which the narrator thinks beyond death into an unknowable “afterlife”, and instances in which the narrator ponders the moment of death itself. 4 Lay Summary This thesis looks at the way Philip Larkin incorporates places and spaces into his novels and poems. Since there is a degree of confusion surrounding what ‘place’ and ‘space’ actually means in literary studies, the thesis begins by reviewing modern-day and historic appropriations of these terms. At this point, the thesis ventures to suggest that Larkin may have had a greater understanding of pre-20th century types of ‘place’ description than previously thought. Conversely, when describing ‘space’ in his poetry and prose, the poet appears to take his inspiration from more modern forms of thought and literary style. Using the terms ‘Englishness’ and ‘genius loci’, this thesis looks at the ways space and place manifest themselves in his work. It quickly establishes that the evocation of ‘space’ in Larkin’s writing often corresponds with an attempt by the narrator to describe mental concepts – such as dreams, or memories; or ‘unknowable’ concepts like the cosmos, death, and the afterlife. This correspondence is illustrated by an examination of Larkin’s recently brought-to-light ‘Dream Diaries’, together with an in-depth exploration of the poems that mark the tail end of his career, such as ‘Aubade’ and ‘The Old Fools’. The poet also appeals to ‘space’ when imagining what places are like when he is not there. With regard to the evocation of place, this thesis suggests that Larkin was significantly influenced by the topographical poets of the 18th and 19th centuries. The style of Alexander Pope, for instance, haunts much of his writing career, while the Classical and Romantic genius loci, the ‘spirit’ of a place, seem to be ever-present behind much of his imagery. There is some overlap here: as some poems mix instances of place-making and space- making. Among the more adventurous claims of the thesis is that Larkin’s work reveals the influence of 20th century surrealist art while being similarly inspired by the conceptual world of grammatical and astronomical space. With regard to the critical contexture of Larkin studies, this thesis makes a substantial use of recent publications in Larkin scholarship, especially the notable additions of James Booth, Richard Bradford and Archie Burnett. In contrast to these critics, however, the thesis lays considerable emphasis upon the persistence of certain socialist and liberal sympathies that were borne out in his work: in particular through the displaced female protagonist of A Girl in Winter, and throughout the depictions of prison-like spaces in his later poems. More generally, the thesis argues that renewed attention to Larkin’s evocation of space and place might reveal new and potentially fruitful lines of critical inquiry into his work as a whole. 5 I declare that this thesis was composed by myself, that the work contained herein is my own except where explicitly stated otherwise in the text, and that this work has not been submitted for any other degree or professional qualification except as specified. Alex Howard 6 Table of Contents i. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 7 ii. ABBREVIATIONS USED 8 iii. INTRODUCTION 9 1. CHALLENGING GENRE: RUSKINIAN ALLUSIONS AND UBIQUITOUS ENGLISHNESS IN LARKIN’S FIRST “POST- WAR” NOVEL 32 2. DAY DREAMS AND NIGHT DREAMS: THE ONEIRIC INFORMANTS BEHIND LARKIN’S EVOCATION OF CONTEMPORARY AND MYTHOLOGICAL ENGLANDS IN THE NORTH SHIP 79 3. A “MODERN” FLÂNEUR: LARKIN’S JOURNEYS AND THE EMERGENCE OF “ELSEWHERE” 117 4. WAR & WEATHER: SEASONALITY, TIME AND XÉNOS POETICS IN A GIRL IN WINTER 169 5. GOD’S WAITING ROOM: STATIC CONTEMPLATION IN HIGH WINDOWS 213 6. STARING DEATH IN THE EYE: DEICTICS, SPACING AND GROWING OLD IN HIGH WINDOWS 251 7. CONCLUSION 289 8. WORKS CITED 293 7 Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to thank my supervisor Lee Spinks. The combination of acuity, friendliness and wit with which he conducted our meetings has made completing this thesis an absolute pleasure. I must particularly praise his structured approach which kept me reassured and engaged throughout. Thanks must also go to Penny Fielding and Jonathan Wild, who encouraged me to consider postgraduate study in the first place, and James Loxley for his quickness to assist during inevitable moments of mini-crisis. Furthermore, I am immensely grateful to Michele Beadle and Neil Chadwick of the Hull History Centre, whose friendliness and patience while helping me to locate some of Larkin’s original letters and diaries made my time studying in Hull most enjoyable. Thanks also to my partner Ellie, for contending with inescapable moments of creative uncertainty, and to my parents for their continual emotional support. 8 Abbreviations Used AL About Larkin: Journal of The Philip Larkin Society AWL Andrew Motion, Philip Larkin: A Writer’s Life (1993) CP Anthony Thwaite, ed. Philip Larkin: Collected Poems (2003 edition) FBTF Richard Bradford, First Boredom, Then Fear (2005) FR Philip Larkin, Further Requirements: Interviews, Broadcasts, Statements and Book Reviews, second edition, ed. Anthony Thwaite (2002) LAL James Booth, Life, Art and Love (2014) LTM Anthony Thwaite, ed. Philip Larkin: Letters to Monica (2011) PLP István Rácz, Philip Larkin’s Poetics (2015) PLW James Booth, Philip Larkin: Writer (1992) RW Philip Larkin, Required Writing: Miscellaneous Pieces 1955 – 1982 (1983) SL Selected Letters of Philip Larkin, 1940 – 1985, ed. Anthony Thwaite (1992) SW Stephen Cooper, Philip Larkin: Subversive Writer (2004) TCP Archie Burnett, ed. Philip Larkin: The Complete Poems, (2012) TPP James Booth, The Poet’s Plight (2005) 9 Introduction It is little wonder that Robert Lance Snyder, writing in 2007, opens his discussion of Larkin and ‘place’ with the somewhat exasperated assertion that ‘consider[ing] the significance of place in Philip Larkin’s oeuvre may seem a foredoomed endeavour’ (115). The reasons behind Snyder’s assertion are complicated and far-reaching, and direct us more, I would argue, to deficiencies besetting the critical school of place and space than they do any particular shortcoming in Larkin scholarship itself. I wish to begin our exploration of Philip Larkin, place and space, by outlining a set of critical issues and oversights which, I believe, may have prevented Larkin’s poetics of place over the last 20 years from receiving the full breadth and depth of the critical rigor it deserves.
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