The Art of Derek Walcott

Derek Walcott is a poet of international stature: his work appeals to both academic and popular audiences and is read throughout the world. Immensely talented as a poet, he is also a fine dramatist, a thoughtful essayist and gifted painter. Walcott’s career coincides with the growth of an independent artistic culture in his native Caribbean, the shrugging off of colonial attitudes and the establishing of an indigenous identity. Much of his poetry and drama reflects this struggle, indeed has led the debate and shaped the development of a Caribbean culture. As his reputation reaches new heights with the publication of Omeros this book provides a timely and stimulating review of Walcott’s achievements as poet, playwright, cultural commentator and artist. It draws together critics from the Caribbean, Britain, America and Africa, representing the cultural divide across which Walcott writes, to produce a fascinating account of his work.