'The Black Book': John Berryman's Holocaust requiem

Boswell, Matthew ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0041-5583 2007. 'The Black Book': John Berryman's Holocaust requiem. Coleman, Philip and McGowan, Philip, eds. 'After Thirty Falls': New Essays on John Berryman, Amsterdam and New York: Rodopi, pp. 11-27. (10.1163/9789401204521_003)

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Abstract

This essay looks in detail at an unfinished cycle of Holocaust poems called The Black Book that was begun by the American poet John Berryman in 1948. The essay includes close readings of three published poems and analysis of unpublished material from the Berryman archive. It also considers Berryman's use of Holocaust testimony. Drawing on Susan Gubar's concept of 'proxy-witnessing', this essay argues that Berryman's unfinished cycle highlights some of the distinct challenges of Holocaust representation, occupying an uneasy middle ground between language and silence.

Item Type:	Book Section
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Schools > Journalism, Media and Culture
Subjects:	P Language and Literature > PS American literature
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Berryman, Holocaust
Publisher:	Rodopi
ISBN:	9789042022195
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	10 March 2025
Last Modified:	20 Mar 2025 10:15
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/176734

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