Love, Death and Memories: On Dennis Haskell’s Rhonda Poems

Abstract

Dennis Haskell’s Rhonda poems are undoubtedly the most brilliant and important part of his poetry in the sense that he wrote passionately about love, death and memories in relation to Rhonda in them. As Haskell’s wife and lifelong love, Rhonda not only played a central part in his life and writing, but shaped and deepened his perception of humanity and human relationships. Despite the great impact of Modernism on modern and contemporary English poetry, Haskell’s poetry is strikingly personal, accessible and lyrical. In his work, Haskell seeks to present the approximately genuine pictures of aspects of human relationships in terms of love, death and memories and ultimately, strives to make sense of the dynamics of love in our mundane life.