Simone Weil Among the Poets
Publication Type |
Book Chapter |
Year of Publication |
2008 |
Author |
|
Book |
Ecstasy and Understanding: Religious Awareness in English Poetry from the Late Victorian to the Modern Period |
Pages |
161-171 |
Publisher |
Continuun |
Place Published |
London |
Language |
English |
Keywords |
decreation |
Annotation |
Grafe sets out to examine Weil’s appreciation of English poetry as well as the esteem in which she was held by a number of English poets. He suggests that for many of these poets Weil was seen as “a symbol of something beyond herself, a courageous symbol of the distress and anxiety of the age” (p. 162). He goes on to identify other aspects of her life and work, which seemed to engage a number of these poets, especially her unique insight, and her focus on kenosis – the “self-emptying act of God”. (p. 164). In addition, Weil’s concept of decreation and her writing on the need to ‘wait’ on God both speak to the issues and values of many of those who wrote about or were and are inspired by her. Grafe goes on to briefly discuss Weil’s friendship with two young English poets, one of who introduced her to George Herbert’s poem ‘Love’ which came to play such a large role in her religious life. He concludes his essay with a discussion of Rowan Williams' poem “Simone Weil at Ashford’. |