David Campbell’s Poetic Mind

Abstract

Argues that Campbell's poetry 'may be fruitfully approached then, as, at the outset, both the product and the unfolding of unusually sophisticated thought. The rural or pastoral, so vivid in his work, is but one of its elements, and it is used in a consistent, systematic way. The other elements are also wide-ranging and include ... material from his personal and family history, sex and love, classical mythology. Aboriginal rock carvings, and features of the modern urban landscape. Though the uses to which these subjects are put and the quality of particular poems may vary, the sense we as readers have of an enquiring mind and a markedly individual personality is remarkably consistent.'