This thesis examines Marianne Moore’s poetic project of creating hope within a modern context. Building on an initial discussion of Moore’s skeptical perspective, I go on to argue that Moore’s work fosters a desire both to believe in something unknowable and to maintain faith in a goodness that cannot be realized on earth. Moore posits a more demanding hope than one based on the search for truth and namelessness; she gives hope a meaning beyond the feeling that allows people to keep going. Moore’s hope requires a guarded vision of the future, a capacity for visualizing both the real and the imaginary, and, especially, careful observation. Actively manipulating the possibilities of language while recognizing their limitations, Moore transforms hope into an action, a pursuit of ethics and a focus on something other than the self.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uvic.ca/oai:dspace.library.uvic.ca:1828/1529 |
| Date | 19 August 2009 |
| Creators | Soles, Katharine Elaine |
| Contributors | Carson, Luke |
| Source Sets | University of Victoria |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Rights | Available to the World Wide Web |
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