T. S. Eliot, “Preludes”
T. S. Eliot, “Preludes” I The winter evening settles down With smell of steaks in passageways. Six o’clock. The burnt-out … Continue Reading T. S. Eliot, “Preludes”
Thom Gunn, “On the Move”
Thom Gunn, “On the Move” “Man, you gotta Go.” The blue jay scuffling in the bushes follows Some hidden purpose, … Continue Reading Thom Gunn, “On the Move”
Thom Gunn, “No Speech from the Scaffold”
Thom Gunn, “No Speech from the Scaffold” There will be no speech from the scaffold, the scene must be its … Continue Reading Thom Gunn, “No Speech from the Scaffold”
Ted Hughes – “Crow’s Song about God”
Ted Hughes – “Crow’s Song about God” Somebody is sittingUnder the gatepost of heavenUnder the lintelOn which are written the … Continue Reading Ted Hughes – “Crow’s Song about God”
H. D., “Sea Iris,” “Sea Violet”
Sea Iris I Weed, moss-weed, root tangled in sand, sea-iris, brittle flower, one petal like a shell is broken, and … Continue Reading H. D., “Sea Iris,” “Sea Violet”
Ezra Pound, “Portrait d’une Femme”
Ezra Pound, “Portrait d’une Femme” Your mind and you are our Sargasso Sea, London has swept about you this score … Continue Reading Ezra Pound, “Portrait d’une Femme”
20th Century Poetry #19: Louis MacNeice
Louis MacNeice (1907-1963) One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #19: Louis MacNeice
20th Century Poetry #18: T. S. Eliot
T. S. Eliot (1888-1965) One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #18: T. S. Eliot
Wordsworth & Eternity at St. Paul’s
I’m stunned every time I read this: one of Wordsworth’s best short poems (& that’s saying something), & perhaps one … Continue Reading Wordsworth & Eternity at St. Paul’s
John Donne: Holy Sonnets & Good Friday
“Death, be not proud” Death, be not proud, though some have called thee Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not … Continue Reading John Donne: Holy Sonnets & Good Friday
20th Century Poetry #15: C. Day-Lewis
C. DAY-LEWIS (1904-1972) One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #15: C. Day-Lewis
20th Century Poetry #14: Stevie Smith
20th Century Poetry #13: Basil Bunting
One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years ago. Every Saturday … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #13: Basil Bunting
20th Century Poetry #12: D. H. Lawrence
One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years ago. Every Saturday … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #12: D. H. Lawrence
“My Mother’s Sister,” by C. Day-Lewis
My Mother’s Sister I see her against the pearl sky of Dublin Before the turn of the century, a young … Continue Reading “My Mother’s Sister,” by C. Day-Lewis
20th Century Poetry #11: Rudyard Kipling
One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years ago. Every Saturday … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #11: Rudyard Kipling
20th Century Poetry #9: Susan Miles
One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years ago. Every Saturday … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #9: Susan Miles
20th Century Poetry #8: Wilfred Owen & the Poetry of World War One
One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years ago. Every Saturday … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #8: Wilfred Owen & the Poetry of World War One
20th Century Poetry #6: John Squire & the Poetry of Protest
One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years ago. Every Saturday … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #6: John Squire & the Poetry of Protest
20th Century Poetry #5: Edward Thomas
One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years ago. Every Saturday … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #5: Edward Thomas
20th Century Poetry #4: Laurence Binyon
One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years ago. Every … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #4: Laurence Binyon
William Blake Chooses Eternity
A wonderful paragraph from Peter Ackroyd’s biography of William Blake, where he shows how the poet slowly came to accept … Continue Reading William Blake Chooses Eternity
20th Century Poetry #3: W. H. Davies
One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years ago. Every Saturday … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #3: W. H. Davies
20th Century Poetry #2: A. E. Housman
One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years ago. Every Saturday … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #2: A. E. Housman
20th Century Poetry #1: Thomas Hardy
One way to understand where poetry is now is to see where it was a hundred years ago. Every … Continue Reading 20th Century Poetry #1: Thomas Hardy
Wordsworth & Eternity at St. Paul’s
St. Paul’s Pressed with conflicting thoughts of love and fear I parted from thee, Friend! and took my way Through … Continue Reading Wordsworth & Eternity at St. Paul’s
Ted Hughes: “Devon Riviera” (poem)
Strange to find a Hughes poem more populated by people than animals; & you can tell he’s not happy about … Continue Reading Ted Hughes: “Devon Riviera” (poem)
T. S. Eliot & His Father
Here is a favorite bit from a youthful T. S. Eliot (he’s just turned thirty but that’s young to me … Continue Reading T. S. Eliot & His Father
The Island, the Museum, the Church: 3 Readings from “Bone Antler Stone”
My poetry collection Bone Antler Stone—a panorama of ancient Europe from the painted caves of Lascaux to contact with Greece … Continue Reading The Island, the Museum, the Church: 3 Readings from “Bone Antler Stone”
On “Bone Antler Stone”: Ancient Europe, the Narrow Book & Finding Poetry Again
My poetry collection Bone Antler Stone—a panorama of ancient Europe from the painted caves of Lascaux to contact with Greece … Continue Reading On “Bone Antler Stone”: Ancient Europe, the Narrow Book & Finding Poetry Again
Ted Hughes: 2 War Poems
Six Young Men The celluloid of a photograph holds them well – Six young men, familiar to their friends. Four … Continue Reading Ted Hughes: 2 War Poems
Dylan Thomas: “The force that through the green fuse drives the flower”
The force that through the green fuse drives the flower The force that through the green fuse drives the flower … Continue Reading Dylan Thomas: “The force that through the green fuse drives the flower”
Mary Robinson’s Poem “A London Summer Morning”
After finishing To the House of the Sun, a poem mostly reliant on translations of ancient poetry (and in some … Continue Reading Mary Robinson’s Poem “A London Summer Morning”
“All I know is a door into the dark”: 2 Poems by Seamus Heaney
A young Seamus Heaney recalls a blacksmith from his boyhood, while a much older Seamus Heaney illustrates the sometimes excessive … Continue Reading “All I know is a door into the dark”: 2 Poems by Seamus Heaney
The Poet Speaks #14: Kafka Tries Again & Again
Here are some bits from Kafka’s Diaries, trying & failing to harmonize his writing life with his family and work … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #14: Kafka Tries Again & Again
The Poet Speaks #13: Richard Wilbur & John Berryman: “The artist is extremely lucky who is presented with the worst possible ordeal which will not actually kill him”
Even though I’ve never read a word of his poetry, John Berryman has been haunting me lately. Two friends who … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #13: Richard Wilbur & John Berryman: “The artist is extremely lucky who is presented with the worst possible ordeal which will not actually kill him”
The Poet Speaks #12: Ralph Ellison, Anthony Burgess, James Dickey
If the Negro, or any other writer, is going to do what is expected of him, he’s lost the battle … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #12: Ralph Ellison, Anthony Burgess, James Dickey
The Poet Speaks #11: George Eliot, Ernest Hemingway, Philip Levine, Stephen King, Seamus Heaney: “struggling erring human creatures”
George Eliot, on empathy: The greatest benefit we owe to the artist, whether painter, poet, or novelist, is the extension … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #11: George Eliot, Ernest Hemingway, Philip Levine, Stephen King, Seamus Heaney: “struggling erring human creatures”
The Poet Speaks #9: Geoffrey Hill, Robert Frost, Allen Ginsberg, James Merrill, Ursula K. Le Guin: “We are difficult”
On the supposed “difficulty” of his poetry: We are difficult. Human beings are difficult. We’re difficult to ourselves, we’re difficult … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #9: Geoffrey Hill, Robert Frost, Allen Ginsberg, James Merrill, Ursula K. Le Guin: “We are difficult”
The Poet Speaks #8: Patti Smith, Toni Morrison, T. S. Eliot, Hart Crane: “I shall make every sacrifice toward that end”
As even “nerd culture” and all the rest just becomes another snobby fad and pop culture corner to hide in, … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #8: Patti Smith, Toni Morrison, T. S. Eliot, Hart Crane: “I shall make every sacrifice toward that end”
The Poet Speaks #7: Bronowski, Bloom, Munro, Gilbert, Trevor
On why he turned from more specialized to more popular writing on science and culture: Because of that [the use … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #7: Bronowski, Bloom, Munro, Gilbert, Trevor
The Poet Speaks #6: Yeats & Blake
Some great quotes from W. B. Yeats and William Blake, chosen almost at random from two good biographies of them; … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #6: Yeats & Blake
The Poet Speaks #5: Hughes, Auden, Hall, Pinsky, Collins
On why he wrote about animals so much: I suppose because they were there at the beginning. Like parents. Since … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #5: Hughes, Auden, Hall, Pinsky, Collins
The Poet Speaks #4: O’Connor, Campbell, Merwin, Walcott, van Gogh
Flannery O’Connor responds to questions from academics and their students about her short stories: Week before last I went to … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #4: O’Connor, Campbell, Merwin, Walcott, van Gogh
The Poet Speaks #3: Snodgrass, Beethoven, Hollander, Kunitz, Milosz
Advice to aspiring poets: If you can, get out. Everything else in the world pays better. Everything else in the … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #3: Snodgrass, Beethoven, Hollander, Kunitz, Milosz
The Poet Speaks #2: Leonardo, Williams, Bishop, Meredith, Ashbery
Quotes from all over on art & creativity: [Leonardo] was always less concerned with the finishing of a picture than … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #2: Leonardo, Williams, Bishop, Meredith, Ashbery
The Poet Speaks #1: Fitzgerald, Larkin, Paz, Lowell, Aiken
A new series of quotes from everywhere on writing and creativity: I was in the Navy, and I worked at … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #1: Fitzgerald, Larkin, Paz, Lowell, Aiken
T. S. Eliot on Dante
Is there anything better than T. S. Eliot talking about his debt to Dante? Here is the majority of his … Continue Reading T. S. Eliot on Dante
