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Aesthetic of Elizabeth Bowen's Novels
Light, Atmosphere, Fragmentation, and Sensation
Introduction to Elizabeth Bowen's 'Verbal Painting'
This is the first monograph to evaluate Elizabeth Bowen's 'verbal painting', and the first to acknowledge the influence of the East Kent landscape in her novels. Drawing on the work of critics and on Bowen's own essays and articles, Hirst introduces Bowen to the reader, outlining the range of her literary work and elaborating on Bowen's advice that the reader needs to work at understanding her prose.
Analysis of Light, Eye, and Place
She examines Bowen's use of light and the eye from the perspective of neuropsychology, before considering the importance to Bowen of place.
Verbal Painting and Artistic Parallels
She discusses her 'verbal painting', drawing parallels with different genres (Post-Impressionism, Surrealism, Futurism, Collage) and artists (Paul Cezanne, Pierre Bonnard, Edouard Vuillard, Giorgio de Chirico, Umberto Boccioni, Paul Nash), and the films of French Left Bank Cinema directors (Alain Resnais, Jean Cocteau).
Neologism 'Dyslocution' and Stylistic Influences
Finally, using the neologism 'dyslocution' for Bowen's fragmented syntax, she suggests this has been influenced by French syntax and by poetic techniques, all of which combine in a Cubist style.
