Iris

In his Reaper Essays Jarman espouses the positive characteristics of the narrative poem, and then in his book-length narrative poem, _Iris_, he puts in practice what he puts forth in theory. He uses long lines--ten feet of iambic pentameter. The story is of a young mother, Iris, and her search for family and for the meaning in the poetry of Robinson Jeffers. Section one is as good as you are going to find in narrative poetry. I will admit that section two is rather weak. But he rises again in section three, wich is rather good, it doesn't rise up to what you find in section one, but then what could, but still, it is quite good. I highly recommend this book as an example of what narrative poetry should be.

Though not a fan of New Formalism or any of its subsequent branches, including the New Narrative, I have found Jarman's book-length poem Iris to be captivating and impressive. The book is ultimately a tribute to Robinson Jeffers, but Jarman succeeds in establishing his own narrative style that incorporates deft lyricism and acute observation.