‘Ciaran Carson: Spy in the Superior Turret’

Carson is often depicted, and has often depicted himself, as a poet of the street and of the people, operating beyond and in opposition to the ivory towers of academe. His championing of Irish traditional music, and denigration of classical music, reflects this attitude. Through analysis of Carson's prose and poetry, this chapter argues that his work is more sophisticated, and his allegiances more divided, than might at first be evident; that he should be seen as a poetic fifth-columnist who, through his imaginative credentials, claims a right to occupy and assert authority over the space for poetry marked out by academe.