Repeating after Carson

Abstract

Across her diverse body of work, the Canadian-born poet Anne Carson repeatedly returns to the objects of her preoccupation. From Lazarus—“a person who had to die twice” (Nox)—to Herakles and countless other figures, themes, and images, Carson repeatedly reworks old ground, particularly around the unknowable divide separating the living and the dead. This essay adopts a repetitive approach to explore how H of H and The Trojan Women can be understood as in reiterative conversation with the poet’s source texts, her own work, and wider thinking on the utility of repeating ourselves.