Locking earth to the sky

In the 1950ies, literary critics alternatively praised and deplored Larkin's debunking realism. In the 1960ies and 70ies, they grew more aware of a dualistic tendency in Larkin, and pointed at the gap between reality and dream, or between ugly suburbs and endless vistas. Of late, more and more emphasis has been put on the authentic romantic in Larkin. The present study argues that Larkin's poems combine tendencies which have often been thought to be opposed in them. Its angle of approach is both stylistic and thematic. On the basis of works by Roman Jakobson, Paul Ricoeur and David Lodge, it investigates Larkin's use of metonymy, metaphor and symbol. A further study of themes and motifs sheds new light on how Larkin, as a priest of everyday reality, constructs his religion.