From Feathers to Iron: A Concourse of World Poetics

by John Clarke

Nonfiction. FROM FEATHERS TO IRON--a series of lectures by John Clarke--has virtually no precedent in the literature of poetic interpretation. It is at once a profound revelation of the physics of poetic intelligence and a brilliantly conceived declaration of "the implicate order of the universe." "How rarely I come upon a truly useful book. Clarke has packed it all in here and wherever you open the pages, jewels, pearls, crowns tumble out. I see illustrations to the Arabian Nights. I have already picked up and walked off with treasures"--James Hillman.

240 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1986

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information. This is John^Clarke.

Reviews

[Tom Schulte · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series of lectures by John Clarke includes audience interaction and is an incredible feat of mythopoetic interpretation. Did he do all this off the cuff? In 1980 Clarke describes "the implicate order of the universe" revealed through the inspired, imaginative poetic exploration of the world. I don't understand this order, but I reveled in his facile assembling of related quotes and the ample footnotes' pointers to texts and other works. Clarke mines heavily the ores of innovative poets, writers, and essayists including Charles Olson, Novalis, William Blake, and much more.

A lot of cameos by the Dogon people, intriguingly coming close to Giorgio A. Tsoukalos "Ancient Aliens" territory.

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