All Around the Wrekin: The Midlands as (M)otherland in Liz Berry’s Poetry

Abstract

This article explores the themes of place and transition in the poetry of Liz Berry, especially in Black Country (2014) and The Republic of Motherhood (2018). Berry is an avid reader of the major figures of Midlands poetry, like Roy Fisher, and works closely with other local poets and artists, like R. M. Francis and Tom Hicks. Her poems inhabit and rechart the landscape of the West Midlands, its industrial past, its ecological and artistic transformations. However, her work extends beyond the geographical to explore another land, that of motherhood. Ultimately, her voice breathes new life into the prosodic landscapes of the Black Country accent during the performances of her poems.

Keywords

• performance
• north
• prosody
• motherhood
• south
• east