I did it–I survived my first semester in the Pacific University MFA program. Actually, I thrived. Some days, the prospect of reading and writing at this level is what kept getting me out of bed in the morning. Joe‘s insights into my work have been outstanding, and I have fallen in love with poets like Li-Young Lee and Louise Glück. Grief and loss have been major themes in my work this year, and to that end I am looking closely at the tradition of elegy and the contemporary relationship to the timeless theme of loss.
So, here are some of the books that have surfaced–I would love any thoughts, suggestions or tips on other potential authors in this vein, great poets tackling the timeless theme of loss, scholarship in that regard–anything you care to throw out there. The books:
Criticism
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Max Cavitch, Ed. American Elegy: The Poetry of Mourning from the Puritans to Whitman
Jahan Ramazani, Ed. Poetry of Mourning: The Modern Elegy from Hardy to Heaney
Louise Glück Proofs and Theories: Essays on Poetry
Kim Addonizo and Dorianne Laux The Poet’s Companion: A Guide to the Pleasures of Writing Poetry
Stephen Dobyns Best Words Best Order
Poetry
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Zbigniew Herbert The Collected Poems: 1956-1998
Adam Zagajewski Mysticism for Beginners
Charles Simic Selected Poems: 1963-2004
Li-Young Lee Book of My Nights
James Wright Above the River–the Complete Poems
Stanley Kunitz Passing Through
Jack Gilbert The Great Fires
Linda Gregg Too Bright to See & Alma
Adrienne Rich Diving into the Wreck
Adrienne Rich Atlas for the Difficult World
Marvin Bell The Book of the Dead Man
Edward Kamau Brathwaite Born to Slow Horses
Obviously, not all of these are about elegy–a lot is about filling the gap in my education between a decent background in pre-Modernist poetry from my undergrad. days, and my voracious intent to bone up on contemporary poets.
Here’s to the wisdom of poetic crowds–long may it not be an oxymoron! Discuss.
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28 Comments
I would recommend Stan Rice’s “Some Lamb” (much of wich is about the death of his daughter from leukemia); Charles Jensen’s recent chapbook “Living Things”; Edward Hirsch’s “Lay Back the Darkness”; and Cecilia Woloch’s book-length poem “Tsigan.”
Thanks a bunch, Collin! Sounds like all good stuff to look into.
Yes, I can see how you’d respond to Gluck. She is unrelenting in looking grief in the eye.
I find the Carolyn Forche’s “Against Forgetting” anthology effective.
Thanks, Sherry. Forche and Wolloch are both names I know but not well enough.
Robert,
I will send more as I think of them, but In Memoriam comes to mind – I know it’s an oldie but relevant to my mind.
Miguel Hernadez is also someone I’d look at. A collected poems came out a few years ago and includes poems to his son who died young as well as a close friend.
These are two I had not thought of during our previous chat.
Kind regards, K
Thanks, Keith.
Congratulations. Keep on plugging and chugging.
Robert,
I dunno if Keith already suggested this one, but David Ray’s “Sam’s Book” is a very moving collection of elegies for his son.
Brent
Robert,
Congrats on a gruelling semester under your belt!
I enjoy reading your blog and I hope you don´t mind an undergrad hopping in to offer a few humble suggestions…
I am quite pleased to see that you´ve read ¨The Great Fires,¨ ¨Tear it Down¨ is one of my favorite poems by Gilbert.
I too spent a good ammount of time this semester dealing with loss. I took a great class called ¨Voices of Eros in Poetry¨ that closely examined Eros, its relation to poetry and how both are inherently lacking.
John Berryman´s ¨Sonnets to Chris¨ were difficult to take on for me, yet his obsessiveness and the brief feelings of excitement paired closely with lack added greatly to my semester.
Also, speaking of lack and loss, Sappho´s ¨If not, Winter¨ is a fine example of loss obviously because all of her words have not survived, but the Eros she speaks of constantly leaves me empty. For that matter, the translator, Anne Carson´s work: ¨Eros, the Bittersweet¨ is a fantastic book where she explains Eros and its inherent lack. She is a beautiful communicator.
I greatly enjoyed living in lack and loss this semester, I´m glad to have a kindred spirit out there!
Take care,
Reagan
I’ve read somewhere that Canadian poets dwell preponderantly on “grief” and “loss’. What can I tell you we are a morose lot. It must have something to do with all that snow and hockey. So I’m going to recommend a Canadian poet for a change:
Pat Lowther’s: “A Stone Diary” (Oxford, 1977).
Ah yes, the morose contemplative sport of hockey. I feel ya, Nick. Thanks for the tip on Pat Lowther.
Thanks, Reagan. Lots of good stuff here. Dealing more with Thanatos than Eros these days, but hey – two sides of a coin. A Greek coin, I guess. Don’t be a stranger.
Thanks, Brent. I keep hearing about that book – guess I should check it out.
Just a quick note to say we’re moving over the Memorial weekend (this weekend – eek!) So if I don’t respond to say thanks for your suggestions, please accept my thanks in advance, and keep ‘em coming. I’m putting together my study proposal for Monday, but it’s just the proposal – can (and likely will) amend the reading list with my advisor.
Robert, for my money, the single finest elegy in the English language is by Carl Phillips: “As From a Quiver of Arrows.” I think you could spend a semester on that poem alone.
http://www.cavecanempoets.org/pages/poems/quiver.html
I enjoy lists like this. Thank you for posting. Even those of us no longer in school will enjoy this.
Would it be too obvious to mention Milton’s “Lycidas” as a model elegy? You might also check Donald Hall’s *Without* and *The Painted Bed*; both are sequences for his late wife, Jane Kenyon, which are reminiscent of Ted Hughes’ *Birthday Letters*. I also really like Mark Doty’s *My Alexandria* and the poems of Donald Justice (everything he ever wrote was an elegy). Oh, and you can’t go wrong with John Crowe Ransom’s *Selected Poems*: chock full of grief and loss handled with restraint.
David Wojahn. And Jake York’s Murder Ballads. One example from Jake that’s a favorite of mine: http://thediagram.com/3_2/york.html
THe Widening Spell of the Leaves (1991) and Elegy (1997) by the late Larry Levis.
It’s hard to track down in the US, but deceased British poet Michael Donaghy’s Conjure has some lovely elegies in it, especially “Annie” and “Haunts”.
Thanks, Janet. Going back to London in August. Perhaps a trip to Foyles is in order.
But of course! Loved /Winter Stars/.
Thanks for the two Donalds and a Doty. Will definitely check this out.
Remarkable. Thanks, Ross.
Just looked into Lowther’s life a bit more. What a strange and tragic story.
OK, I’ve submitted this semester’s Study Proposal, including many of the suggestions on this thread. Thanks to all of you for your recommendations – and please keep them coming! The proposal is subject to change when I confer with my faculty advisor, and this topic is something I plan to keep exploring for some time.
The elegy has been on my mind. There are several I really like in a book called Blues for Bill, which is a book of elegies written for the late, great poet William Matthews. Particularly good in this book are Dave Smith’s “Coming Down in Ohio” and David Wojahn’s “Scrabble with Matthews.” I really love Matthews’ poems (the best buy would be Search Party: Collected Poems), and the book of elegies is interesting, if for no other reason, because it allows us to see the various approaches poets have taken to memorializing one of our great contemporary voices. You might also check out Kevin Young’s For the Confederate Dead, a book which riffs off Allen Tate’s masterful elegy (“Ode to the Confederate Dead”) and its sequel from Robert Lowell (For the Union Dead).
Thanks, Ryan. An anthology of elegies to the same person sounds like a great way to get different angles on the form.