Backgrounds to David Jones

This is the first book to make extensive use of David Jones's drafts of poems and essays, his letters, and his own annotations to the books in his library. It takes into account all Jones's published poetry and offers a thematic treatment of his ideas and work. This book considers the philosophical and intellectual backgrounds and the historical sources that lie behind David Jones's poetry. By consulting the texts that Jones drew on either directly or indirectly in the creation of his poetry, the author has attempted to prepare the ground for a sympathetic understanding of all Jones's work. The present volume makes extensive use of the books which Jones possessed and annotated. It also considers a large number of unpublished drafts and letters and includes a long passage from "In Parenthesis "that was eventually deleted by the poet. The book discusses all Jones's published work and considers the major themes and preoccupations that absorbed him.