Mark Ford
Poet and Professor of English and American Literature at University College London, contributing literary analysis and readings focused on Thomas Hardy's poetry.
Top 5 podcasts with Mark Ford
Ranked by the Snipd community
21 snips
Dec 19, 2019 • 53min
Auden
Join Janet Montefiore, a W.H. Auden expert, Jeremy Noel-Tod, a literature lecturer, and poet Mark Ford as they explore the multifaceted life of W.H. Auden. They discuss his struggles with identity, politics, and the moral issues of the 1930s, providing insights into the rise of totalitarianism that inspired his work. The conversation touches on Auden’s complex romantic relationships and his evolving poetic style. They also reflect on how his legacy continues to influence modern audiences and poetry today.
11 snips
Dec 22, 2016 • 49min
Four Quartets
Mark Ford, UCL professor and modernist critic; Fran Brearton, Queen's University Belfast modern poetry specialist; David Moody, emeritus York professor of modern poetry. They trace Four Quartets’ wartime origins, Eliot’s shifting poetic voice, themes of time and spiritual practice, the poem’s musical imagery and meditative paradoxes, and its complex reception in midcentury Britain.
9 snips
Nov 29, 2025 • 17min
Next Year on Close Readings: Realism, Nature, Narrative Poems and a history of London
James Wood, a prominent literary critic, explores the essence of realism in major novels. Meehan Crist and Peter Godfrey-Smith delve into environmental literature, highlighting influential works like 'Silent Spring' while discussing the intricate relationship between science and narrative. Mark Ford sheds light on the narrative poetry tradition, mapping connections from Marlowe to contemporary poets. The discussions intertwine fiction and reality, revealing how literature reflects and shapes our understanding of nature and narrative.
4 snips
May 25, 2023 • 50min
Walt Whitman
Sarah Churchwell, a Professor of American Literature, Peter Riley, a Lecturer in 19th Century American Literature, and Mark Ford, a Professor of English and American Literature, dive into the life of Walt Whitman. They discuss his groundbreaking collection, 'Leaves of Grass,' and how it defied traditional forms through free verse. The conversation also explores Whitman's complex relationship with individuality and community amid the Civil War. His evolving views on race and societal norms, infused with optimism and paradox, reveal his enduring influence on American poetry.
Jul 25, 2024 • 57min
The Great Political Poems
Mark Ford and Seamus Perry discuss the essence of great political poems, exploring ideology in poetry, the importance of context, and conveying political truths through verse. They analyze works like Yeats's 'Easter 1916' and Auden's 'Spain 1937, delving into political conviction and poetic ambiguity.
