Gavin Bantock (born 4 July 1939) is an English poet; he is the grandson of
Granville Bantock
Sir Granville Ransome Bantock (7 August 186816 October 1946) was a British composer of classical music.
Biography
Granville Ransome Bantock was born in London. His father was an eminent Scottish surgeon.Hadden, J. Cuthbert, 1913, ''Modern Music ...
.
He was born in
Barnt Green
Barnt Green is a village and civil parish in the Bromsgrove District of Worcestershire, England, situated south of Birmingham city centre, with a population at the 2011 census of 1,794.
History
Originating from the development of the railwa ...
, and attended
New College, Oxford
New College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by Bishop William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as New College's feeder school, New College was one of the first col ...
, where he won the
Richard Hillary
Flight Lieutenant Richard Hope Hillary (20 April 1919 – 8 January 1943) was an Anglo-Australian Royal Air Force fighter pilot during the Second World War. He wrote the book '' The Last Enemy'' about his experiences during the Battle of Bri ...
prize for poetry.
He traveled to Japan in 1964 on the advice of his father, Raymond, and returned five years later to teach at
Reitaku University.
He has remained in the country ever since. Initially teaching English language and literature at Reitaku, he began also leading a group of students in productions of English plays, which eventually became his primary career. After retiring from Reitaku in 1994, he became the drama coach at Meitoku Gijuku High School in
Kochi
Kochi ( , ), List of renamed Indian cities and states#Kerala, formerly known as Cochin ( ), is a major port city along the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea. It is part of the Ernakulam district, district of Ernakulam in the ...
.
Many of Bantock's poems treat elements of Christianity, history, mythology, or medieval and Renaissance literature in arresting, often disturbing terms. His book-length poem "Christ," first published in 1965 and issued in a revised edition in 2020, is skeptical of "any idea of an innate and preordained divinity in an incarnate Christ," according to
Adrian A. Husain
Adrian A. Husain (born Syed Akbar Husain) is a Pakistanis, Pakistani poet, William Shakespeare, Shakespearean scholar, and literary journalist.
He was the founding Chairman of the civil rights think tank ''Dialogue: Pakistan'' prior to 2007 Pa ...
's introduction to the revised edition. His poems "Joy" and "Dirge" were included by
Philip Larkin
Philip Arthur Larkin (9 August 1922 – 2 December 1985) was an English poet, novelist, and librarian. His first book of poetry, '' The North Ship'', was published in 1945, followed by two novels, '' Jill'' (1946) and '' A Girl in Winter'' (194 ...
in ''
The Oxford Book of Twentieth Century English Verse''.
included excerpts from Bantock's "Hiroshima," which Matthias calls "terrifying," in the collection ''23 Modern British Poets.''
Selected books
*''Christ: A Poem in Twenty-Six Parts.'' Oxford: D. Parsons, 1965.
*''Juggernaut.'' Northwood: Anvil Press Poetry, 1968.
*''A New Thing Breathing.'' Northwood: Anvil Press Poetry, 1969.
*''Anhaga.'' London: Anvil Press Poetry, 1972.
*''Eirenikon: A Poem.'' London: Anvil Press Poetry, 1972.
*''Isles.'' Feltham: Quarto Press, 1974.
*''Dragons.'' London: Anvil Press Poetry, 1979.
*''Just Think of It.'' London: Anvil Press Poetry, 2002.
*''SeaManShip.'' Manchester: Carcanet, 2003.
*''Christos, Lovesong of the Son of Man: A Poem in Twenty-Six Parts.'' (Revision of 1965 work) First Servant Books, 2020.
*''Hail, Salubrious Spot! (How's Your Rupture): Memories of a Worcestershire Village.'' First Servant Books, 2020.
*''Thys Felyship: Oxford Days Around 1960, A Memoir.'' First Servant Books, 2021
*''Shakespeare for Student Actors
irst Servant Shakespeare Edition in 35 vols.' First Servant Books, 2022.
*''Playhouse, A Theatrical Cavalcade, Sixty New Poems'' First Servant Books, 2022
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bantock, Gavin
1939 births
Living people
20th-century English poets
English expatriates in Japan