The Unsung Heroes of Holy Garbage: An Analysis of Waste in A.R. Ammons’s Garbage

This essay analyzes A.R. Ammons Garbage (1993) through the lens of Waste Studies by focusing on the interactions between the material and metaphorical uses of waste, scrutinizing the complex trope of the dump-ziggurat, and paying special attention to the neglected figure of the waste collector or ga...

ver descrição completa

Detalhes bibliográficos
Autor: Simal-González, Begoña
Tipo de documento: artigo
Estado:Versão publicada
Data de publicação:2023
País:España
Recursos:Universidad de La Laguna (ULL)
Repositório:RIULL. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de La Laguna
OAI Identifier:oai:riull.ull.es:915/32168
Acesso em linha:http://riull.ull.es/xmlui/handle/915/32168
Access Level:Acceso aberto
Palavra-chave:A.R. Ammons
Garbage
Waste Theory
Waste Studies
garbage dump
waste collectors
“Garbage Poetry”
id ES_d18d28476f4e3055a3d9ced9719973d0
oai_identifier_str oai:riull.ull.es:915/32168
network_acronym_str ES
network_name_str España
repository_id_str
spelling The Unsung Heroes of Holy Garbage: An Analysis of Waste in A.R. Ammons’s GarbageLos héroes olvidados de la “basura sagrada”: un análisis de Garbage, de A.R. Ammons, desde los Waste StudiesSimal-González, BegoñaA.R. AmmonsGarbageWaste TheoryWaste Studiesgarbage dumpwaste collectors“Garbage Poetry”This essay analyzes A.R. Ammons Garbage (1993) through the lens of Waste Studies by focusing on the interactions between the material and metaphorical uses of waste, scrutinizing the complex trope of the dump-ziggurat, and paying special attention to the neglected figure of the waste collector or garbage worker. In the 1990s, when Ammons published his long poem, waste and garbage were becoming pivotal tropes in American poetry. While Ammons deals with the inescapable presence of garbage in his homonymous poem, he also goes beyond the materiality of waste in order to incorporate more metaphorical resonances. Arguably, the most valuable insights that Garbage has to offer derive precisely from its striking juxtaposition of the material and the immaterial, the scatological and the eschatological. Most importantly, Ammons not only sings a hymn to the huge garbage dump and its implications, but also to the “unsung heroes” of modernity (Bauman 2004): the anonymous workers who collect the garbage and maintain the landfill.Este artículo analiza el poema de A.R. Ammons Garbage (1993) desde la perspectiva de los Waste Studies, prestando especial atención a la interacción entre los usos literales y metafóricos de la basura, escudriñando el tropo del vertedero-zigurat y deteniéndose en la figura olvidada del trabajador de la basura. En la década de los noventa, cuando Ammons publicó su libro, la basura y los desechos se estaban convirtiendo en imágenes recurrentes en la poesía estadounidense. Si bien Ammons se ocupa de la presencia ineludible de la ba- sura en su poema homónimo, también sabe ir más allá de la materialidad del residuo para incorporar resonancias metafóricas. Podría decirse que las ideas más valiosas que Garbage tiene que ofrecer derivan precisamente de su sorprendente yuxtaposición de lo material y lo inmaterial, combinando los dos sentidos del término escatológico. Lo que es más importante, Ammons no sólo canta un himno al enorme vertedero de basura y sus implicaciones, sino también a los “héroes anónimos” de la modernidad (Bauman 2004): los trabajadores que recogen la basura y mantienen el vertedero.Servicio de Publicaciones. Universidad de La Laguna202320232023info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttp://riull.ull.es/xmlui/handle/915/32168reponame:RIULL. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de La Lagunainstname:Universidad de La Laguna (ULL)InglésRevista Canaria de Estudios Ingleses, 86, 2023, pp. 21-37;Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internacionalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:riull.ull.es:915/321682026-06-22T13:13:57Z
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv The Unsung Heroes of Holy Garbage: An Analysis of Waste in A.R. Ammons’s Garbage
Los héroes olvidados de la “basura sagrada”: un análisis de Garbage, de A.R. Ammons, desde los Waste Studies
title The Unsung Heroes of Holy Garbage: An Analysis of Waste in A.R. Ammons’s Garbage
spellingShingle The Unsung Heroes of Holy Garbage: An Analysis of Waste in A.R. Ammons’s Garbage
Simal-González, Begoña
A.R. Ammons
Garbage
Waste Theory
Waste Studies
garbage dump
waste collectors
“Garbage Poetry”
title_short The Unsung Heroes of Holy Garbage: An Analysis of Waste in A.R. Ammons’s Garbage
title_full The Unsung Heroes of Holy Garbage: An Analysis of Waste in A.R. Ammons’s Garbage
title_fullStr The Unsung Heroes of Holy Garbage: An Analysis of Waste in A.R. Ammons’s Garbage
title_full_unstemmed The Unsung Heroes of Holy Garbage: An Analysis of Waste in A.R. Ammons’s Garbage
title_sort The Unsung Heroes of Holy Garbage: An Analysis of Waste in A.R. Ammons’s Garbage
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Simal-González, Begoña
author Simal-González, Begoña
author_facet Simal-González, Begoña
author_role author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv A.R. Ammons
Garbage
Waste Theory
Waste Studies
garbage dump
waste collectors
“Garbage Poetry”
topic A.R. Ammons
Garbage
Waste Theory
Waste Studies
garbage dump
waste collectors
“Garbage Poetry”
description This essay analyzes A.R. Ammons Garbage (1993) through the lens of Waste Studies by focusing on the interactions between the material and metaphorical uses of waste, scrutinizing the complex trope of the dump-ziggurat, and paying special attention to the neglected figure of the waste collector or garbage worker. In the 1990s, when Ammons published his long poem, waste and garbage were becoming pivotal tropes in American poetry. While Ammons deals with the inescapable presence of garbage in his homonymous poem, he also goes beyond the materiality of waste in order to incorporate more metaphorical resonances. Arguably, the most valuable insights that Garbage has to offer derive precisely from its striking juxtaposition of the material and the immaterial, the scatological and the eschatological. Most importantly, Ammons not only sings a hymn to the huge garbage dump and its implications, but also to the “unsung heroes” of modernity (Bauman 2004): the anonymous workers who collect the garbage and maintain the landfill.
publishDate 2023
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2023
2023
2023
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://riull.ull.es/xmlui/handle/915/32168
url http://riull.ull.es/xmlui/handle/915/32168
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv Inglés
language_invalid_str_mv Inglés
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv Revista Canaria de Estudios Ingleses, 86, 2023, pp. 21-37;
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internacional
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internacional
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Servicio de Publicaciones. Universidad de La Laguna
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Servicio de Publicaciones. Universidad de La Laguna
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv reponame:RIULL. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de La Laguna
instname:Universidad de La Laguna (ULL)
instname_str Universidad de La Laguna (ULL)
reponame_str RIULL. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de La Laguna
collection RIULL. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de La Laguna
repository.name.fl_str_mv
repository.mail.fl_str_mv
_version_ 1869420273098293248
score 15,301603

Registros relacionados