Hugh MacDiarmid – a great Scot?

A like Hugh Macdairmid’s poetry (e.g. It’s Hugh McDiarmid’s birthday) but ken fine weel he wis a ‘controversial’ feegure. This programme set aff a richt stushie ower on FB.


On FB

‪Neil Young‪ Hard work, hard to ignore.

‪Stuart Paterson‪ Acoorse, an Grieve scrievit a wheen mair than poetry. But his poetry led the wey in retourin Scots tae the forefront in a sorts o scrievin.

‪Danny McTavish‪ Dodgy geezer.

 

 

‪Nicola Black‪ He said a lot of stupid things , and really wanted media attention and fame. He would take an opposing view on anything, and often contradicted himself. When I was writing songs from his poetry I had 2 years off as I managed to ‘fall out’ with a long dead man. Even now he divides opinion. He was a communist, flirted with fascism, wanted to fight in the Spanish Civil War, spent time and corresponded with Keir Hardy and Ezra Pound and many other people . His personal life was a mess and he drank like a fish. He elicited strong emotion from folks and still does. He stopped writing in Scots for many years as He saw English as the language of ‘ science and the future’ . A wildly contradictory man.

‪Stuart Paterson‪ Ma post wis referrin tae Grieve’s scrievin in Scots. He wis yin o wur verra best lyric makars o ony time. Bletherins anent his views an politics are anither maitter forby.

‪Danny McTavish‪ weel gin hes said tae o shaped a nation and modren leid, his ideas are important tae whit and hou he wrate.

‪Stuart Paterson‪ No airguin wi yon. But thon ideas disnae shape his lyric warks. Hoo an ever, his yuiss o Scots an promulgation o the leid bi whiteer means maist certainly did help shape the literary nation we’ve become the day. His politics, lik the politics o sae mony back then, were o their time & ne’er held furrit past a few years, save that his contribution tae helpin the cause o nascent Scottish nationalism wis notit.

‪Nicola Black‪ Weel pit.

‪Stuart Paterson‪ Tae be honest, much as Ah love Grieve’s lyrics, Ah still condeeser wur ain Willie Neill a better makar in Scots, in mony weys an in a thrie leids.

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