Against the Evidence: Selected Poems, 1934-1994 (Wesleyan Poetry Series)
Ignatow gathers his poetic career in this collection. He portrays metaphorically the themes of death and isolation, which dominate the volume, through trees, rocks, and clouds. These metaphors suggest that the speaker is enclosed or rooted in the self, alienated from the world. In the early poems, Ignatow uses cheap rhetoric that leads us to pseudoprofound conclusions. How ever, the later poems (dating from the Seventies to the present) retain the themes of death and isolation but are more subtle and lucid; these poems reveal Ignatow's poetic genius. Because the speaker has grown comfortable with himself and enjoys being alone, we revel in the emotional impact of the poems and can "look forward to tomorrow." We can identify with Ignatow when he says "one leaf left/ on a branch and no unhappiness." Against the Evidence shows Ignatow's poetic development and maturity, making this an essential addition to most collections.- Tim Gavin, The Episcopal Acad., Merion, Pa.Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.