The Elsewhere Community (Massey Lectures)
Part memoir, part essay on the theme of the Grand Tour, this work by KennerDa prolific critic, professor emeritus at the University of Georgia, and the leading authority on the poet Ezra PoundDdiscusses the role of travel as part of completing one's education and as a metaphor for intellectual discovery. Kenner speaks of travel as a search for mentors, which he refers to as the Elsewhere Community. In addition to examples of the Grand Tour, he draws on his Canadian father's trip to Rome, as well as his own experiences with mentors such as Ezra Pound, Samuel Beckett, Marianne Moore, and William Carlos Williams, each part of Kenner's own Elsewhere Community. He discusses passages from these and other writers, such as Yeats and the poet Patty Kavanagh, to illustrate their own searches for a like group. He also reflects on the meaning of the Internet and reading as part of the community. Originally delivered as five talks on Canadian radio in 1997, Kenner's treatment is accessible, if occasionally repetitive. This thoughtful, witty, and charming book is highly recommended.DT.L. Cooksey, Armstrong Atlantic State Univ., Savannah, GACopyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.