RS Thomas Biography

The man who went into the West by Byron Rogers

Reading a biography of RS Thomas by Byron Rogers called The man who went into the West. I like this so far because I find it very refreshing the way Rogers tells you exactly who he has spoken to, how accessible Thomas's family was, and where he's got his information from rather than trying to write the book in that oracular ubiquitous biographer fashion that you usually meet with. Byron takes you on the journey with him as he creates this biography.

I'm really enjoying the way the biography writing experience is shared with the reader, particularly where the biographer phones Thomas's son up and asks "Was your Father mad?"

He can't understand why Thomas blamed his mother for so much and yet didn't improve upon her performance as a parent in any way that I can see. Yet he calls Thomas the greatest lyrical poet in the English language. It's the same contradiction that alot of people find with Philip Larkin, certainly I did, I love Larkin's poetry, yet the man himself was a nightmare, though I must admit I find Larkin's poetry more accessable than RS Thomas's.

It begs the question do the truly great poets have to be self-absorbed to a degree that makes them fail in other areas of their lives, in the way that boxers who reach the pinnacle of their sport have to be able to be extraordinarily vicious?

What also gets me is how the poets never give one another any credit. Larkin called RS "Arsehole Thomas", and RS had no time for his countryman and namesake, Dylan.

There's something strange about this race of people they call poets!

Let's face it, Larkin was a nutcase! Brilliant poet, yes, but a total fruitcake. Carrying on three relationships at the same time, yet clearly a bit of a mysoginist. Rather keen on pornography, out and out racist, almost as right-wing as Goebbels, and it seems that he just disliked people on a whim. Hmmmmm!!!

Thanx for the reply dafydd. Well RS Thomas wasn't much better, in his role as a vicar he once signalled that a funeral was over by leaping over a wall beside the grave and leaving the mourners to it. How insensitive can you get? If he didn't want to talk to people he just didn't talk to them. His social skills left alot to be desired.

Dylan Thomas................well............... And then, from the same part of the country Idris Davies, who was about as normal as you could get.