Summary
Dr Sam Perry's research focuses on the relationship between 20th-century poetry and Romanticism, with particular emphasis on that prodigiously talented group of British poets, including Ted Hughes, R S Thomas and Philip Larkin, who rose to prominence with the publication of Penguin's seminal anthology, The New Poetry (1962).
These concerns culminate in Chameleon Poet: R S Thomas and the Literary Tradition (Oxford University Press, 2013), a book that draws upon Keats' notion of the 'chameleon poet' to explore questions of influence and identity. Dr Perry is currently engaged in a long term project exploring the representation of childhood in 20th century poetry.
Invited to deliver the Plenary Lecture at the 2018 R S Thomas and M E Eldridge Festival of Poetry and Art
Book
Book Chapter
'The Small Box': Ted Hughes and the figure of the child
Perry, S. J. (2018). ‘The Small Box’: Ted Hughes and the figure of the child. In K. McLoughlin (Ed.), British Literature in Transition, 1960–1980: Flower Power (352-367). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316424179.028
Hughes and Surrealism
Perry, S. (2018). Hughes and Surrealism. In T. Gifford (Ed.), Ted Hughes in Context (103-112). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108554381.013
Journal Article
The innocence of R.S. Thomas
Perry, S. (2019). The innocence of R.S. Thomas. Essays in Criticism, 69(3), 325-348. https://doi.org/10.1093/escrit/cgz017