Gavin Ewart

Stephen W. Delchamps
Download PDF Add to Bookshelf Report an Error

Gavin Ewart’s career in verse had two phases: starting in the 1930s as a teenage prodigy under the influence of W. H. Auden, Ewart almost disappeared during the post-war years and 1950s. He then reemerged in the 1960s as a mature poet who reacted against the obscurity of much contemporary poetry. From the 1960s onward, Ewart was one of England’s most popular and prolific poets, best known for poems that were light in manner though often serious in matter and written in clear everyday language. Many of Ewart’s poems deal with sex, in tones ranging from bawdy fun to anxious or melancholy reflection. Though he has been called a “Laureate of Lust”, this does a disservice to the tonal range of his sexual poetry. Likewise, though he was a master of light verse, to classify Ewart as a…

1995 words

Citation: Delchamps, Stephen W.. "Gavin Ewart". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 25 January 2022 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=1465, accessed 13 December 2024.]

1465 Gavin Ewart 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.