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44-543: Poets House was founded in 1985 by the late Stanley Kunitz , two-time poet laureate of the United States, and arts administrator Elizabeth Kray. With holdings of more than 80,000 volumes,Poets House contains virtually all poetry books published in the U.S. since 1990, plus many that are long out of print dating to the early 20th Century. It also contains literary journals and chapbooks (small books of poetry), and many audiotapes, videotapes, CDs, and DVDs of poetry readings from

88-622: A commission and was discharged with the rank of staff sergeant . After the war, he began a peripatetic teaching career at Bennington College (1946–1949), taking over from Roethke. He subsequently taught at the State University of New York at Potsdam (then the New York State Teachers College at Potsdam) as a full professor (1949–1950; summer sessions through 1954), the New School for Social Research (lecturer; 1950-1957),

132-570: A Book of Biographies . His poems began to appear in Poetry , Commonweal , The New Republic , The Nation , and The Dial . During World War II, he was drafted into the Army in 1943 as a conscientious objector , and after undergoing basic training three times, served as a noncombatant at Gravely Point, Washington in the Air Transport Command in charge of information and education. He refused

176-499: A collection of essays, The Wild Braid: A Poet Reflects on a Century in the Garden . Kunitz's first collection of poems, Intellectual Things, was published in 1930. His second volume of poems, Passport to the War , was published fourteen years later; the book went largely unnoticed, although it featured some of Kunitz's best-known poems, and soon fell out of print. Kunitz's confidence was not in

220-572: A former student. Roethke was a heavy drinker and susceptible to bouts of mental illness, something not uncommon among American poets of his generation. He did not initially inform O'Connell of his repeated episodes of mania and depression , yet she remained dedicated to him and his work. She ensured the posthumous publication of his final volume of poetry, The Far Field , as well as a book of his collected children's verse, Dirty Dinky and Other Creatures , in 1973. From 1955 to 1956 he spent one year in Italy on

264-619: A philosophy minor, and then earned a master's degree in English from Harvard the following year. He wanted to continue his studies for a doctorate degree, but was told by the university that the Anglo-Saxon students would not like to be taught by a Jew. After Harvard, he worked as a reporter for The Worcester Telegram , and as editor for the H. W. Wilson Company in New York City. He then founded and edited Wilson Library Bulletin and started

308-580: A respected poetry teacher, and taught at the University of Washington for fifteen years. His students from that period won two Pulitzer Prizes for Poetry and two others were nominated for the award. "He was probably the best poetry-writing teacher ever," said poet Richard Hugo , who studied under Roethke. Roethke was born in Saginaw, Michigan , and grew up on the west side of the Saginaw River. His father, Otto,

352-566: A return to the strict stanzaic forms of the earliest work,' [according to the poet] Stanley Kunitz. [The critic] Ralph Mills described 'the amatory verse' as a blend of 'consideration of self with qualities of eroticism and sensuality; but more important, the poems introduce and maintain a fascination with something beyond the self, that is, with the figure of the other, or the beloved woman.'" In reviewing his posthumously published Collected Poems in 1966, Karl Malkoff of The Sewanee Review wrote: Though not definitive, Roethke: Collected Poems

396-456: A scholarship of the U.S.-Italy Fulbright Commission . In 1961, "The Return" was featured on George Abbe's album Anthology of Contemporary American Poetry on Folkways Records . The following year, Roethke released his own album on the label entitled, Words for the Wind: Poems of Theodore Roethke . In 1961, Roethke was chosen as one of 50 outstanding Americans of meritorious performance in

440-644: A womb, a heaven-on-earth." Roethke drew inspiration from his childhood experiences of working in his family's Saginaw floral company. Beginning in 1941 with Open House , the distinguished poet and teacher published extensively, receiving a Pulitzer Prize for poetry and two National Book Awards among an array of honors. In 1959 Pennsylvania University awarded him the Bollingen Prize. Roethke taught at Michigan State College, (present-day Michigan State University) and at colleges in Pennsylvania and Vermont, before joining

484-427: Is a major book of poetry. It reveals the full extent of Roethke's achievement: his ability to perceive reality in terms of the tensions between inner and outer worlds, and to find a meaningful system of metaphor with which to communicate this perception.... It also points up his weaknesses: the derivative quality of his less successful verse, the limited areas of concern in even his best poems. The balance, it seems to me,

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528-518: The Author Biographical Studies . Kunitz married Helen Pearce in 1930; they divorced in 1937. In 1935 he moved to New Hope, Pennsylvania and befriended Theodore Roethke . He married Eleanor Evans in 1939; they had a daughter Gretchen in 1950. Kunitz divorced Eleanor in 1958. At Wilson Company, Kunitz served as co-editor for Twentieth Century Authors , among other reference works. In 1931, as Dilly Tante, he edited Living Authors,

572-1096: The Library of Congress (the precursor title to Poet Laureate), one term as Poet Laureate of the United States, and one term as the State Poet of New York . He founded the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, Massachusetts , and Poets House in New York City . Kunitz also acted as a judge for the Yale Series of Younger Poets Competition . Kunitz served as editor of the Wilson Library Bulletin from 1928 to 1943. An outspoken critic of censorship, in his capacity as editor, he targeted his criticism at librarians who did not actively oppose it. He published an article in 1938 by Bernard Berelson entitled "The Myth of Library Impartiality". This article led Forrest Spaulding and

616-636: The University of Michigan , earning a B.A. magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa in 1929. He continued on at Michigan to receive an M.A. in English in 1936. He briefly attended the University of Michigan School of Law before resuming his graduate studies at Harvard University , where he studied under the poet Robert Hillyer . Abandoning graduate study because of the Great Depression , he taught English at several universities, including Michigan State University , Lafayette College , Pennsylvania State University , and Bennington College . In 1940, he

660-681: The University of Washington (visiting professor; 1955-1956), Queens College (visiting professor; 1956–1957), Brandeis University (poet-in-residence; 1958-1959) and Columbia University (lecturer in the School of General Studies ; 1963–1966) before spending 18 years as an adjunct professor of writing at Columbia's School of the Arts (1967–1985). Throughout this period, he also held visiting appointments at Yale University (1970), Rutgers University–Camden (1974), Princeton University (1978) and Vassar College (1981). After his divorce from Eleanor, he married

704-469: The 1960s editing reference books and translating Russian poets. When twelve years later The Testing Tree appeared, Kunitz's style was radically transformed from the highly intellectual and philosophical musings of his earlier work to more deeply personal yet disciplined narratives; moreover, his lines shifted from iambic pentameter to a freer prosody based on instinct and breath—usually resulting in shorter stressed lines of three or four beats. Throughout

748-666: The 70s and 80s, he became one of the most treasured and distinctive voices in American poetry. His collection Passing Through: The Later Poems won the National Book Award for Poetry in 1995. Kunitz received many other honors, including a National Medal of Arts , the Bollingen Prize for a lifetime achievement in poetry, the Robert Frost Medal , and Harvard 's Centennial Medal. He served two terms as Consultant on Poetry for

792-597: The Des Moines Public Library to draft the Library Bill of Rights , which was later adopted by the American Library Association and continues to serve as the cornerstone document on intellectual freedom in libraries. Theodore Roethke Theodore Huebner Roethke ( / ˈ r ɛ t k i / RET -kee ; May 25, 1908 – August 1, 1963) was an American poet. He is regarded as one of

836-512: The animal and vegetable world, processes that cannot be reduced to growth and decay alone. In addition to the well-known greenhouse poems, the Poetry Foundation notes that Roethke also won praise "for his love poems which first appeared in The Waking and earned their own section in the new book and 'were a distinct departure from the painful excavations of the monologues and in some respects

880-565: The best of shape when, in 1959, he had trouble finding a publisher for his third book, Selected Poems: 1928-1958. Despite this unflattering experience, the book, eventually published by Little Brown, received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry . In a murderous time the heart breaks and breaks and lives by breaking. It is necessary to go through dark and deeper dark and not to turn. ~ Stanley Kunitz His next volume of poems would not appear until 1971, but Kunitz remained busy through

924-552: The book, Elizabeth Drew felt "his poems have a controlled grace of movement and his images the utmost precision; while in the expression of a kind of gnomic wisdom which is peculiar to him as he attains an austerity of contemplation and a pared, spare strictness of language very unusual in poets of today." Roethke kept both Auden's and Drew's reviews, along with other favorable reactions to his work. As he remained sensitive to how peers and others he respected should view his poetry, so too did he remain sensitive to his introspective drives as

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968-408: The critic Ian Hamilton also praised this book, writing, "In Roethke's second book, The Lost Son , there are several of these greenhouse poems and they are among the best things he wrote; convincing and exact, and rich in loamy detail." Michael O'Sullivan points to the phrase "uncertain congress of stinks", from the greenhouse poem " Root Cellar ", as Roethke's insistence on the ambiguous processes of

1012-683: The faculty of the University of Washington at Seattle in 1947. Roethke died in Washington in 1963. His remains are interred in Saginaw's Oakwood Cemetery. The Friends of Theodore Roethke Foundation maintains his birthplace at 1805 Gratiot in Saginaw as a museum. Roethke Auditorium (Kane Hall 130) at the University of Washington is named in his honor. In 1995, the Seattle alley between Seventh and Eighth Avenues N.E. running from N.E. 45th Street to N.E. 47th Street

1056-638: The fields of endeavor, to be Guest of Honor to the first annual Banquet of the Golden Plate in Monterey, California. This was awarded by vote of the National Panel of Distinguished Americans of the Academy of Achievement . He suffered a heart attack in his friend S. Rasnics' swimming pool in 1963 and died on Bainbridge Island, Washington , aged 55. The pool was later filled in and is now a zen rock garden open to

1100-483: The household. The death of his father would be a powerful influence on Kunitz's life. Kunitz and his two older sisters, Sarah and Sophia, were raised by his mother, who had made her way from Yashwen , Kovno, Lithuania by herself in 1890, and opened a dry goods store. She remarried in 1910 to Mark Dine The couple filed for bankruptcy in 1912 and then were indicted by the U.S. District Court for concealing assets. They pleaded guilty and turned over USD$ 10,500 to

1144-732: The literary newspaper Poetry Flash called Poets House "The House That Holds A Country," a reference to its dedication to being a caretaker of the nation's poetic heritage. In November 2020, Poets House announced it was suspending operations as a result of the economic impact of COVID-19. In 2021, the building was damaged by a flood, although the library was intact. It reopened in January 2024. In 2009, Poets House moved from its longstanding location in SoHo to an eco-friendly "green" building at Ten River Terrace in Lower Manhattan's Battery Park City. The move

1188-505: The mid-twentieth century through today. Visitors to Poets House can hear the voices of Walt Whitman , E. E. Cummings , William Carlos Williams , Sylvia Plath and hundreds of other poets. In 2005, it was among 406 New York City arts and social service institutions to receive part of a $ 20 million grant from the Carnegie Corporation , which was made possible through a donation by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg . In 1996,

1232-537: The most accomplished among the "middle generation" of American poets. In her 2006 book, "Break, Blow, Burn: Forty-three of the World's Best Poems," critic Camille Paglia includes three Roethke poems, more than any other 20th-century writer cited in the book. The Poetry Foundation entry on Roethke notes early reviews of his work and Roethke's response to that early criticism: W. H. Auden called [Roethke's first book] Open House "completely successful." In another review of

1276-450: The most accomplished and influential poets of his generation, having won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1954 for his book The Waking , and the annual National Book Award for Poetry on two occasions: in 1959 for Words for the Wind , and posthumously in 1965 for The Far Field . His work was characterized by a willingness to engage deeply with a multifaceted introspection, and his style

1320-488: The painter and poet Elise Asher in 1958. His marriage to Asher led to friendships with artists like Philip Guston and Mark Rothko . Kunitz's poetry won wide praise for its profundity and quality. He was the New York State Poet Laureate from 1987 to 1989. He continued to write and publish until his centenary year, as late as 2005. Many consider that his poetry's symbolism is influenced significantly by

1364-472: The poets of the American Northwest . Some of his best known students included James Wright , Carolyn Kizer , Tess Gallagher , Jack Gilbert , Richard Hugo , and David Wagoner . The highly introspective nature of Roethke's work greatly influenced the poet Sylvia Plath . So influential was Roethke's poetry on Plath's mature poetry that when she submitted "Poem for a Birthday" to Poetry magazine, it

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1408-459: The public at the Bloedel Reserve , a 150-acre (60 hectare) former private estate. There is no marker to indicate that the rock garden was the site of Roethke's death. There is a sign that commemorates his boyhood home and burial in Saginaw, Michigan. The historical marker notes in part: Theodore Roethke (1908–1963) wrote of his poetry: The greenhouse "is my symbol for the whole of life,

1452-614: The source of his creativity. Understandably, critics picked up on the self as the predominant preoccupation in Roethke's poems. Roethke's breakthrough book, The Lost Son and Other Poems , also won him considerable praise. For instance, Michael Harrington felt Roethke "found his own voice and central themes in The Lost Son" and Stanley Kunitz saw a "confirmation that he was in full possession of his art and of his vision." In Against Oblivion , an examination of forty-five twentieth century poets,

1496-415: The trustees. Mark Dine died when Kunitz was fourteen; he had a heart attack while hanging curtains. At fifteen, Kunitz moved out of the house and became a butcher's assistant. Later he got a job as a cub reporter on The Worcester Telegram , where continued working during his summer vacations from college. Kunitz graduated summa cum laude in 1926 from Harvard College with an English major and

1540-473: The work of Carl Jung . Kunitz influenced many 20th-century poets, including James Wright , Mark Doty , Louise Glück , Joan Hutton Landis, and Carolyn Kizer. For most of his life, Kunitz divided his time between New York City and Provincetown, Massachusetts . He enjoyed gardening and maintained one of the most impressive seaside gardens in Provincetown. There he also founded Fine Arts Work Center , where he

1584-734: Was Theodore Roethke." In a Spring 1976 interview in the Paris Review (No. 65), James Dickey defended his choice of Roethke as the greatest of all American poets. Dickey states: "I don't see anyone else that has the kind of deep, gut vitality that Roethke's got. Whitman was a great poet, but he's no competition for Roethke." In his book The Western Canon; The Books and School of the Age, (1994) Yale literary critic Harold Bloom cites two Roethke books, Collected Poems and Straw for The Fire, on his list of essential writers and books. Bloom also groups Roethke with Elizabeth Bishop and Robert Penn Warren as

1628-448: Was a German immigrant, a market-gardener who owned a large local 25- acre greenhouse , along with his brother (Theodore's uncle). Much of Theodore's childhood was spent in this greenhouse, as reflected by the use of natural images in his poetry. In early 1923 when Roethke was 14 years old, his uncle died by suicide and his father died of cancer. Roethke noted that these events affected him deeply and influenced his work. Roethke attended

1672-616: Was a mainstay of the literary community, as he was of Poets House in Manhattan. He was awarded the Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience award in Sherborn, Massachusetts in October 1998 for his contribution to the liberation of the human spirit through his poetry. He died in 2006 at his home in Manhattan. He had previously come close to death, and reflected on the experience in his last book,

1716-778: Was appointed Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress twice, first in 1974 and then again in 2000. Kunitz was born in Worcester, Massachusetts , the youngest of three children, to Yetta Helen ( née Jasspon) and Solomon Z. Kunitz, both of Jewish Russian Lithuanian descent. Six weeks before Stanley's birth, his father, who was a dressmaker, went bankrupt and committed suicide in Elm Park in Worcester by drinking carbolic acid . His mother removed every trace of Kunitz's father from

1760-493: Was expelled from his position at Lafayette and he returned to Michigan. Prior to his return, he had an affair with established poet and critic Louise Bogan , one of his strongest early supporters. While teaching at Michigan State University in East Lansing , he began to suffer from manic depression , which fueled his poetic impetus. His last teaching position was at the University of Washington , leading to an association with

1804-487: Was facilitated via long-term lease awarded by the Battery Park City Authority. The space's interiors were designed by architect Louise Braverman , and is on two floors covering 11,000 square feet (1,000 m) that opens onto an extension of Teardrop Park. Stanley Kunitz Stanley Jasspon Kunitz ( / ˈ k juː n ɪ t s / ; July 28, 1905 – May 14, 2006) was an American poet. He

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1848-603: Was named Roethke Mews in his honor. It adjoins the Blue Moon Tavern , one of Roethke's haunts. In 2016, the Theodore Roethke Home museum announced their "quest to find as many as possible of the 1,000 hand-numbered copies of [...] Roethke's debut collection, Open House, to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the work's publication." Two-time US Poet Laureate Stanley Kunitz said of Roethke, "The poet of my generation who meant most to me, in his person and in his art,

1892-402: Was overtly rhythmic, with a skilful use of natural imagery . Indeed, Roethke's mastery of both free verse and fixed forms was complemented by an intense lyrical quality that drew "from the natural world in all its mystery and fierce beauty." Roethke was praised by former U.S. Poet Laureate and author James Dickey as "in my opinion the greatest poet this country has yet produced." He was also

1936-539: Was turned down because it displayed "too imposing a debt to Roethke." In 1952, Roethke received a Ford Foundation grant to "expand on his knowledge of philosophy and theology", and spent most of his time from June 1952 to September 1953 reading primarily existential works. Among the philosophers and theologians he read were Sören Kierkegaard , Evelyn Underhill , Meister Eckhart , Paul Tillich , Jacob Boehme , and Martin Buber . In 1953, Roethke married Beatrice O'Connell,

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