Norman Nicholson: Encyclopedia II - Norman Nicholson - Work

Norman Nicholson - Work

Nicholson's work is characterised by the simplicity and directness of his language. He attempted to write in the vernacular of the common people in his native town. Much of his work concerned mining, quarrying and ironworks—the dominant industries in his area. Religion and faith was another aspect of his work. His poetry also abounds with direct quotations from everyday life, skilfully weaved into the body of the poem. The opening of Old Man at a Cricket Match, is typical:

'It's mending worse.' He said,
Bending west his head . . . 

Nicholson is not generally associated with any of the poetic movements of the twentieth century. Rather, like Charles Causley, he seems to be considered more of an isolated figure, working on his poetry outside of the mainstream of poetic trends. Perhaps because of this, Nicholson's work has received relatively little critical attention. He is not without his admirers though. Seamus Heaney has said "Nicholson's diction and images realise the texture and pieties of a whole way of life….A domestic world of bereavements and nostalgias, riddles and catch-phrases, is caught in poems that are half-humorous, half-melancholy written in a relaxed and colloquial style."

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Work", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki