BIRTH OF A POET

HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW was born on February 27, 1807, in Portland, Maine. He was a prolific  poet, who became the most popular American poet of his time. 

Longfellow was a precocious student, who started his schooling at the

age of three. His love for reading and learning was encouraged and nurtured by his mother. As time went on, he became obsessed with pursuing a career in literature. Ten years later, in 1820, he wrote and published his first poem.

 Longfellow  enrolled in Bowdoin College in 1822 , and in 1825, graduated with honors .  To wit, he finished fourth in his class, gave the student commencement address, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and was offered a position as  professor of modern languages. He was all of eighteen years old.

From 1826 -1829, Longfellow traveled throughout Europe where he learned to speak, French, Spanish, Portuguese, and German. Back in the states he assumed the professorship previously offered him  by his alma mater, where he taught as well as translated textbooks in the languages he learned while overseas.

In 1834, he was offered and accepted the position of the Smith Professorship of Modern Languages at Harvard College, with the stipulation to spend a year or so overseas, where he studied Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Finnish, and Icelandic. He returned to America in 1836, he took up his professorship, and three years later he was inspired to write poetry based on his life experiences. He was also inspired by the likes of fellow authors, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Washington Irving, whom he met and admired. Once this inspiration set in, Longfellow eventually penned over 300 poems, one of which was the classic, "Paul Revere's Ride," set during the time of the American revolution.

His first poetry collection was published  in 1839, another volume followed in 1841.

Longfellow died in 1882.

To read his impressive bio Google-search his name

IN MEMORY OF...

PHILIP LEVINE  was an award-winning poet who was born and bred in Detroit, Michigan, in 1928.

After graduating from Detroit Central High School in 1946, he went on to Wayne (State) University where he began to write poetry. He earned his B.A  in 1950. 

In 1954 he attended the University of Iowa Writer's Workshop, where he studied with the poets, Robert Lowell and John Berryman. He eventually received a "mail order" master's degree from the university in 1954, and his MFA in 1957

Levine taught in the English department at California State University, Fresno, for over three decades, as well as holding teaching positions at various other universities throughout the United States, including Columbia, Princeton, and NYU.

He has published numerous volumes of poetry. 

In 1995 he received the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry for his collection entitled, "The Simple Truth."  He was named the U.S. Poet Laureate for 2011.

Philip Levine died on February 14, 2015. He was 87 years old.

To read some highlights of his career and sample his poetry Google-search his name

BIRTH OF A POET

Amy Lowell was born on this day in 1874 in Brookline, Massachusetts. She was born into a family that was considered one of the most accomplished families in America. Her brother Percival was an Astronomer, and her other brother, Abbott, was president of Harvard University.

Lowell was a poet of the imagist school.

Imagism was a movement of  early 20th century Anglo-American poetry. It was invented by poet Ezra Pound around 1909.  Imagist poems were short, written in "free verse,"  and presented images without comment or explanation. It favored precision of imagery and clear sharp language.

Lowell, who started writing poetry in 1902, later led the movement which, expired near the end of World War 1.

Her first published poetry was in 1910, followed two years later by the publication of her first collection of poems. Lowell lived the affluent life of a socialite, and traveled  extensively throughout the U.S. and Europe. As such, she published her own work, as well as that of other writers.

Her own writings included criticisms of French literature, poetical re-workings of literal translations of Ancient Chinese poets, and biographical manuscripts. She was a promoter of both contemporary and historical poets.

Lowell died of a brain hemorrhage in 1916 at the age of 51.

A year later she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for her collection, "What's O'Clock."

To read the bio of her storied career Google-search her name

POETRY EVENTS - NEW YORK CITY

Poetry Events for January and February Mark Strand (1934-2014) (photo © Timothy Greenfield-Sanders) Sunday January 18, 5:00pm Mark Strand Memorial U.S. Poets Laureate Charles Simic and Charles Wright, actor Mary Louise Parker, painterWilliam H. Bailey, composer and pianist John Musto, playwright John Guarre, novelistFrancine Prose, family members, and others pay tribute to the late poet Mark Strand (1934-2014). Admission: Free Location: American Academy of Arts and Letters (entrance at 632 West 156th Street) Wednesday January 21, 6:00pm Language Matters with Bob Holman: a film by David Grubin There are over 6000 languages in the whole world. We lose one every two weeks. Hundreds will be lost within the next generation. By the end of this century, half of the world’s languages will have vanished. What do we lose when a language dies? What does it take to save a language? Join us to honor the new PBS documentary Language Matters with Bob Holman: a film by David Grubin with excerpts from the film woven together with live performances by endangered language speakers, including Native American poets, a hālau hula (Hawaiian school of dance), and presentations on the colorful legacy of Yiddish and the tongue twisting poetry of the Welsh language, followed by a Q & A with Bob Holman and David Grubin and a reception. Admission: Free Location: National Museum of the American Indian 1 Bowling Green Language Matters with Bob Holman airs on PBS THIRTEEN on Sunday, January 25 at 12:30pm. For more information on events and airdates visit www.languagemattersfilm.com Vijay Seshadri Saturday February 7, 3:00pm Transgenres with Vijay Seshadri Why do so many poets also write prose nonfiction? What transformations occur between poem and essay? Pulitzer Prizewinner Vijay Seshadri, whose newest book is 3 Sections, discusses notions of identity, form, and fulfillment for contemporary writers. Part of Other Impulses: Poets Writing Across Genres. Admission: $10, $7 for students and seniors, free to Poets House members Location: Poets House 10 River Terrace Get to know Vijay Seshadri in this recent New York Times profile

BIRTH OF A POET

Claudia Emerson was born on this day in 1957, in Chatham. Virginia. 

She was a poet, and Professor of English, who has won many awards and honors throughout her distinguished career.

She has taught at several colleges as an English professor, and has been an Editor at more than a few  publications.

During that time she has published five poetry collections, and her poems have appeared in numerous anthologies.

In 2006 she received the Pulitzer Prize for poetry for her collection of poems,  "Late Wife."

In 2008, she was appointed Poet Laureate of the state of Virginia, where she served until 2010.

In 2013 to joined the creative writing staff at Virginia Commonwealth University, where she taught until her death last year on December 4th, a little over a month ago.

During the early part of her life, she graduated from  Chatham Preparatory School in 1975, went on to the University of Virginia, where she received a BA in English in 1979 and in 1991, she earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Her sixth collection of poetry, "The Opposite House," is scheduled to be published later this year in March 2015.

To read the details of her short, but outstanding career Google -search her name

BIRTH OF A POET

CARL AUGUST SANDBURG was born on this day in 1878 in Galesburg. Illinois. He was  an American poet and writer.

Sandburg was the recipient of three Pulitzer prizes. One for history, and two for poetry.

In 1919 he won the Pulitzer prize for poetry for his collection "Corn Huskers," and in 1951 for his collection "Complete Poems."

In 1940 he won the Pulitzer prize for history for "The War Years," a biography of Abraham Lincoln

Sandburg was probably the first America urban folksinger. He would accompany himself on solo guitar at poetry recitals and lectures long before the folk revivals of the 1940s and 1960s.

Sandburg was also the first white person to be honored by the NAACP. They gave him the Silver Plaque Award. They were honoring him as a "major prophet in the civil rights of our time." 

Sandburg died in 1967

To read about some of the exploits of Carl Sandburg Google-search his name

TRIBUTE TO DR. MAYA ANGELOU

A great poet and writer has passed on to the realm of the ancestors.

Today we honor Dr. Maya Angelou. May her spirit be received in peace and harmony.

PROMPT FOR TODAY: Write a poem paying tribute to Dr Maya Angelou.

IF FOR SOME REASON YOU DON'T KNOW WHO SHE WAS, GOOGLE-SEARCH HER NAME AND FIND OUT.

POETIC MEMORIAL FOR MAY 15TH

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EMILY DICKINSON (1830-1886) was an American poet. She was born in Amherst, Massachusetts on December 10, 1830.

She was a prolific writer who enclosed her poems in letters that she wrote to her friends. Because of her secluded existence and lifestyle, she has established the image of a poet as that of a recluse and a loner.

Dickinson admired the works of the English poets, John Keats, as well as, Robert and Elizabeth Barrett-Browning, whose poetry was widely popular in both Britain and the United States.

She was dissuaded, however, by advice through family and friends, from reading the poetry of Walt Whitman, her American contemporary, by rumors of the disgracefulness of his poetic subject matters.

Emily Dickinson died on May 15, 1886, and although she was unrecognized during her lifetime, she is now considered one of the towering figures in the annals of poetry.  She is best known for the skillful use of FORM and SYNTAX in her poems.

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To learn more about Emily Dickinson, log on to poets.org and search her name.
To read her poetry log on to poemhunters.com and search her poem titles.
Also log on to biography.com and search her name, as well as google-search her name and read all entries that interest you.

TO MOTHER WITH LOVE (2010)

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A MEMORIAL POEM FOR MOTHER'S DAY ***
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AFTER THE STORM


Since you've been gone
I'm always lookin'
For your presence
In rain clouds passin'
Overhead through dark
Skies hopin' to see
Your smile in
Bright flashes of
Lightning hear
Your voice in
The boomin'
Aftermath of thunder
Feel your eternal love
In warm rays of
Beaming sunshine



***For my beloved mother, Adele, who lives in my heart!