Australian poetry classics: Francis Webb, the 20th century’s ‘most unjustly neglected poet’, is our best kept literary secret

In this series, we explore influential Australian poems. There are giants of Australian literature who are household names, and those who once were but are no longer. Francis Webb (1925–73) fits firmly in the latter category. His works are rarely quoted in public life, inscribed on public art or taught in schools. Webb’s case tells us much about the shifting character and nature of Australian literature, for he has never been completely forgotten either. His reputation endures in a strange…