On the Prize Essay

"Awful but cheerful" sonically recycles the metaphor of a jawful of marl, a couple of lines earlier, and that metaphor, in turn, forms part of a whole pattern of images of disarticulated bones: ribs of marl protruding from the bay at low tide, humorous elbowings among the pelicans, birds' cleft tails like wishbones. The Andrew J. Kappel Prize in Literary Criticism, named for the late critic and esteemed deputy editor of Twentieth-Century Literature, is awarded annually to the author of a work submitted to the journal during the preceding year that is judged to make the most impressive contribution to our understanding and appreciation of the literature of the twentieth century.