Marriage consists of two sequences of poems. The first is loosely based on the relationship between Pierre Bonnard and his muse and model, who was also his wife. It is a rich pattern for the study of the mysteries of domesticity, the unspoken privacies and intimacies that can exist between two people. For the painter, problems of seeing become, for the husband, problems of knowing. 'Marriage' is an inspired portrait of conjugality, exact, watchful and understated. The second sequence, 'Lepus', extends an interest in the hare as trickster, traceable elsewhere in David Harsent's work, and most recently in 'The Woman and the Hare', a piece commissioned by the Nashe Ensemble, set to music by Harrison Birtwistle, and first performed at the South Bank Centre in 1999.

About the Author
David Harsent has published thirteen collections of poetry. Legion won the 2005 Forward Prize for Poetry. Night (2011), a Poetry Book Society Choice, was shortlisted for the Costa, Forward and T. S. Eliot poetry prizes and won the Griffin International Poetry Prize. Fire Songs (2014) won the T. S. Eliot Prize. His most recent collection, Loss, was published in 2020.

Reviews
'Harsent's commitment to lyricism has caused him to fight hard over difficult territory, since he is not content to isolate shining moments, but is driven to tackle complex subjects. His solution is the dramatic sequence... There is an acute sexual edge and much brilliant imagery.' Peter Porter, Observer


Awards
Short-listed for Forward Poetry Prize: Best Collection 2002.



Book Information
ISBN 9780571212514
Author David Harsent
Format Paperback
Page Count 80
Imprint Faber & Faber
Publisher Faber & Faber
Weight(grams) 110g
Dimensions(mm) 199mm * 131mm * 7mm