MOVEMENT POETRY

“The movement” was the term coined by the then literary editor of the spectator, J.D. Scott to describe a
group of writers that arose in Britain after the Second World War during the 1950s-60s, including Philip
Larkin, Kingsley Amis, Thom Gunn, Donald Davie and Robert Conquest. Although they were considered a
literary group, the members of the Movement saw themselves more as an actual literary movement, with each
writer sharing a common purpose even as each poet had their own distinctive viewpoints and literary style.
The movement arose as a response to the dominant styles and to reintroduce poetry into everyday life;
their objective was to prove the importance of traditional English poetry, over the American-led innovations of
modernist poetry. They were not anti-modernity but they opposed modernist literature. To these poets, good
poetry was simple, had sensuous content and a traditional, conventional and dignified form. They gave
importance to clarity, accessibility and classic forms.
The Movement sparked the divisions among different types of British poetry. Their poems were nostalgic
for an older England and filled with rural images of the decaying way of life in the villages as the English
people moved away from the countryside and into urban ghettoization. But they particularly targeted the
1940s poets and especially denounced the literary legacy of Dylan Thomas, who embodied, "everything they
(the movement poets) detested: verbal obscurity, metaphysical pretentiousness, and romantic rhapsodizing."
They influenced development of British poetry by emphasizing the ordinary, criticising romanticism and
valuing traditional craftsmanship.
The Movement's poetry includes its worldview, which took into account the collapse of the British
Empire and the United Kingdom's drastically reduced power and influence over world geo-politics. It has a
strong emphasis on the commonplace and mundane aspects of existence, which is one of its defining
characteristics. The poems give importance to the human experience, and themes fundamental to it are chosen,
like love, loneliness and death.
The movement produced two anthologies of poems: Poets of the 1950s (1955) and New Lines (1956).
The editor of New Lines, Robert Conquest talks describes the poems of the movement as a “little more than a
negative determination to avoid bad principles”, the bad principles here meaning the excesses of theme or
stylistic devices. In 1963, a sequel to the original New Lines anthology, titled New Lines 2, was published. It
included many of the authors from the original anthology, as well as younger English poets like Thomas
Blackburn, Edwin Brock, Hilary Corke, John Fuller, Ted Hughes, Edward Lucie-Smith, Anthony Thwaite and
Hugo Williams.
The influence of the Movement poets declined after the introduction of “Angry Young Men” in the
literary scenario in 1956. Author and critic David lodge opines that the decline started from the publication of
New Lines; as they no longer had to fight and defend their work, as they had become accepted members of
literary world.
Philip Larkin
AND THE MOVEMENT

Philip Larkin is a famous poet of the 20th century known for his distinctive style and insightful
observations on human nature. He is not considered to have conventionally connected with any one literary
movement, but his poetry demonstrates characteristics that represent the spirit of movement poetry. Philip
Larkin is considered one of the most important of movement poets due to his investigation of societal
changes, emphasis on the mundane, and powerful depiction of the human condition. His simple,
straightforward verse shows an empathetic portrayal of the changing norms, beliefs and attitudes of his time
that accompanied the socioeconomic struggle that occurred in post-World War Britain is a testament to his
keen observational skill and critical eye. His poems capture the essence of a changing society in all its chaotic
delicacy.
Larkin’s candid, often blunt verses show the stark, abrupt changes that happen in society. In “High
Windows,” he talks about the sexual liberation and evolving views on relationships that arose in the 1960s.
When I see a couple of kids
And guess he’s fucking her and she’s
Taking pills or wearing a diaphragm,
I know this is paradise.
The speaker of the poem takes in the current sexual freedom that the young seem to have, and looks back
on his youth, lamenting the absence of it in the earlier generations. (“…That’ll be the life/ No God any more,
or sweating in the dark / About hell and that, or having to hide / What you think of the priest.) Larkin
expresses the sentiment of a society embracing newfound openness while lamenting the loss of conventional
values and societal restraints.
Another prime example of his examination of social changes is “Annus Mirabilis” (1967), which
translates to “miracle year” in Latin. The year it was composed was one of political unrest and artistic
transformation, contrasting the mundane with important events, such the introduction of the first heart
transplant and the legalization of homosexuality. Larkin captures the mood of this revolutionary era: the
feeling of flux and uncertainty that came with these societal shifts, through his vivid language.
Sexual intercourse began
In nineteen sixty-three
(which was rather late for me) -
Between the end of the Chatterley ban
And the Beatles' first LP.
…
Then all at once the quarrel sank:
Everyone felt the same,
And every life became
A brilliant breaking of the bank,
A quite unlosable game.
The examination of the mundane and the commonplace activities that happen in normal human life is an
important feature of Movement poetry; and Larkin’s poetry frequently explores these experiences. He
investigates the routine activities that frequently go unnoticed or underappreciated, illuminating their
importance. In “The Whitsun Weddings” he provides an illustration of his emphasis on the commonplace. The
poem involves a seemingly unimportant journey on a train where Larkin sees numerous wedding parties on it.
At first, I didn’t notice what a noise
 The weddings made
…
And went on reading.
But his sharp observations and attention to detail uncovers the complexity and emotions involved in these
seemingly everyday moments. He sees “The fathers with broad belts under their suits / And seamy foreheads;
mothers loud and fat; / An uncle shouting smut; and then the perms, / The nylon gloves and jewellery-
substitutes..” and so on. The people were so distinct from each other, how differently the maidens, for
example, react to weddings from married women or from men; how each wedding was different from the
other. Larkin challenges readers to consider the fleeting nature of life and the universal human experiences
that pass beyond social barriers by elevating the commonplace pleasures of taking a train and celebrating
weddings.
His careful choice of words produces vivid sensory descriptions and Larkin elevates the ordinary with
evocative language and powerful imagery, giving his poetry a sense of profundity and resonance. The
situations shown through his poems are relatable to the common man. Similarly, in his poem “Toads,” Larkin
makes use of imagery to elevate the ordinary experience of going to work every day. He compares the routine
of a worker to a toad crouching in a drain as he depicts the boring tasks of a worker, conveying a sensation of
confinement, implying the sense of imprisonment and a desire to flee. Larkin turns a commonplace event into
a potent representation of the conflicts and aspirations of human experience through the careful deploying of
metaphors.
Larkin’s poetry explores, in-depth, themes that are fundamental to the human experience, like love,
loneliness, and mortality. His poetry provides a comprehensive examination of these shared emotions and
illuminate the intricacies and paradoxes present in human relationships and life.
In the poem “An Arundel Tomb,” Larkin examines the eternal nature of love and how it is portrayed in
sculpture. The poem considers the relationship between a sculpture from a medieval tomb and the love it
stands for.
Side by side, their faces blurred,
The earl and countess lie in stone,
…
One sees, with a sharp tender shock,
His hand withdrawn, holding her hand.
Even while Larkin accepts the transience of existence and the inevitable fading of love with time, he
contends that love still has a powerful presence despite its transient nature: “What will survive of us is love.”
Larkin examines a different perspective to romantic relationships in the poem “Talking in Bed,” dealing
with the emotional isolation and distance that can occur. He depicts the emptiness and unspoken sentiments
that frequently characterize personal moments, exposing the difficulties and inherent ambiguities of human
connection.

Talking in bed ought to be easiest,

Lying together there goes back so far,
An emblem of two people being honest.
Yet more and more time passes silently.
…
Words at once true and kind,
Or not untrue and not unkind.
 The depth of Larkin’s understanding of the human mind is demonstrated by his ability to convey
unspoken conflict and emotional intricacies within relationships.
The poem “This Be the Verse,” shows the difficulties of familial relationships and the inheritance of
unhappiness. The poem questions the idealized idea of family life and presents an honest and unpolished
viewpoint on the long-term effects of kinship.
They fuck you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.
Larkin’s honest investigation of the intricacies of families is in line with the Movement poetry’s
characteristics of realism and rejection of romanticized ideals.
Larkin’s position as a movement poet is unquestionable: his distinctive style, focus on the ordinary, and
investigation of universal topics reflects the movement poetry’s fundamental principles of realism,
accessibility, and an emphasis on ordinary life. His works, beautified by his precise language, vivid imagery,
and profound understanding of the human condition resonate with readers and influenced later generations of
poets.