Abstract
Robert Duncan’s and Denise Levertov’s poetic interpretations of Bede’s account of Cædmon depict him as the origin of poetic subjectivity, a gift from others and for others. In Duncan’s account the visiting figure becomes Friend Song, and the external command to sing is transformed into an envoy for Duncan’s own works. Levertov’s poem cultivates an alliterative line that draws on the wellspring of Anglo-Saxon verse while playing with the shape of the line. Cædmon retreats among his cattle, ‘dumb among body sounds,’ and finds there a command to join the dance. In both accounts poetic inspiration constitutes a fusion of body and song, and this embodiment resonates with the songs of voices, calling Cædmon and the poets who join with him into a realm of endless giving, ‘into the world that’s all of song/commingling,’ in Duncan’s words, connecting medieval and modern verse.
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Notes
This and all following references to poems by Denise Levertov are to Levertov and indicated by line number (Levertov, 2002).
References
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Buchanan, P. Cædmon and the gift of song in Black Mountain poetry. Postmedieval 6, 165–173 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1057/pmed.2015.21
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/pmed.2015.21