John Ashbery

Jess Cotton, Cotton, Jess

• Publisher: Reaktion Books
• Year: 2023
• Print ISBN: 9781789143911
• eBook ISBN: 9781789143928
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: Literary Biographies
• Index: Literature

Mysterious, esoteric, baffling – John Ashbery is notorious for the seeming difficulty of his work. But Ashbery is also entertaining, humorous and charming, and responsive to his shifting social and political contexts. This biography charts his emergence from a minor avant-garde figure to the most important poet of his generation.
In this entertaining account, Jess Cotton provides a legible and accessible map of Ashbery's work that draws connections between the poetry, the New York art and literary world and the political climate of the middle decades of the twentieth century. It makes the case for a more approachable, enjoyable and engaged Ashbery and will appeal to both students and the general reader, as well as anyone interested in American poetry, queer lives and twentieth-century history.

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Introduction: ‘Everybody’s Autobiography’: Writing Against the Confessional Grain
• 1 ‘Living on the Edge of a Live Volcano’: Childhood, 1927–42
• 2 ‘Our Days Put on Such Reticence’: The Making of Little J. A., 1943–9
• 3 ‘Excitation, Excitation of Feeling/ Excitement, Mental Excitement’: The Encouraging Climate of New York, 1949–55
• 4 ‘I Love Trashy Things as Long as They’re French’: Taking French Leave, 1955–64
• 5 ‘The Invisible Avant-Garde’: Turning Down Warhol, 1965–75
• 6 ‘I’m Famous for Being Famous’: The Decade of Self-Inventiveness, 1975–84
• 7 ‘The Tribe of John’: In the Manner of Ashbery, 1984–94
• 8 ‘Jump-Start Variety’: The Zaniness of the Late Style, 1994–2017
• Epilogue: ‘Let’s Pay Attention’: Ashbery’s Lives
• References
• Bibliography
• Acknowledgements
• Photo Acknowledgements