I have read and attempted an initial classification of poems taken from the Diaries and those numbered 301-400. As a former teacher of English I have attempted a brief critical analysis of the poems and stress that I have adopted an objective approach.
General: The poems represent the juvenile poetry and later mature work of DW. They are strongly visual with frequent references to colours, both primary and more exotic, as would be expected.
He favours lyric poetry – many quite short and with a strong emphasis on rhyme. A considerable number are in Scots and these seem to me to be among his most successful work. The poems tend to be highly wrought, sometimes rather florid, introspective and reflective.
Influences: Waterson in his early days was no doubt influenced by poetry studied at school or readily available in libraries etc. Some of his supernatural and mythological verse has echoes of the Pre-Raphaelite late Victorian style both in subject matter and treatment. Some of the Scots poems hark back to medieval ballad forms and there are also strong similarities with W B Yeats in his recurring theme of Celtic/Irish mythology. Nature is regarded romantically and sentimentally which is a reminder of Wordsworth, Coleridge and Clare but the most pervasive influence is his strong visual sense – his artist’s eye for detail and colour characterise his poetry. He also loves the lasses!
Themes: Several major themes can be discerned in DW’s poems. The natural world is central to his poetic interest and also a related theme is the passage of time. He writes of the seasons and particular months and notes the changes and subtleties of nature that they bring to landscape. He reveals a romantic streak – especially in his earlier work – which introduces another recurring theme – that of melancholy.
There is often a wistful and frustrated tone in much of his writing. He agonises on love at various stages of his life. His fascination with the wider world is clear in his mythological and supernatural musings often mentioning dreams and dreaming (cf Yeats). He was obviously quite widely read and makes frequent classical allusions. I would suggest that in some poems he reflects upon his own ambitions as an artist and his relationship to Brechin, his native city. He returns to the Viking/Danish raids on Brechin and the surrounding landscape and includes some biting social comments in several poems.
Style: The language of poetic diction and the over-elaborate rhyme schemes which DW employs can become rather tiresome. He is often consciously striving for a poetic voice and this results in some highly artificial and ornate lines which do seem forced. I also freely confess that some of the poems – as well as individual words or lines – do not make much sense and baffle me and here, an appreciation of or a nod to impressionism or post-impressionism becomes necessary.
DW tries to create an atmospheric quality as he would in a painting or etching- in some of his poems. His insistence on rhyme also detracts from some of his work. It can descend into doggerel at times; he is careless with scansion.
The lack of titles in Poems 301-400 seems an odd omission on his part. The Scots poems have a lively quality and are worthy of closer study from a dialect and local Angus vocabulary standpoint. There is, however, great vigour and an honesty in what he expresses on the page. His prose evocation of the Taranty Fair is wonderfully nostalgic and powerful – appealing to all the senses!
Those who transcribed his work deserve great praise for their patience, scholarship and devotion even although there are still some blanks to be filled in!