{"product_id":"on-poetry-and-craft-selected-prose-9781556591563","title":"On Poetry and Craft: Selected Prose","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e\"One of the virtues of good poetry is the fact that it irritates the mediocre.\"\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTheodore Roethke was one of the most famous and outspoken poets and poetry teachers this country has ever known. In this volume of selected prose, Roethke articulates his commitments to imaginative possibilities, offers tender advice to young writers, and zings darts at stuffed shirts, lightweights and fools.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e\"Art is our defense against hysteria and death.\"\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith the assistance of Roethke's widow, this volume has been edited to include the finest selections from out of print collections of prose and journal entries. Focused on the making and teaching of poetry, \u003ci\u003eOn Poetry and Craft\u003c\/i\u003e will be prized in the classroom-and outrageous Roethke quotes will once again pepper our conversations.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e\"You must believe a poem is a holy thing, a good poem, that is.\"\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eTheodore Roethke\u003c\/b\u003e was of an illustrious generation of poets which included Sexton, Plath, Lowell, Berryman, and like them he received nearly every major award in poetry, including the Pulitzer Prize and twice the National Book Award. In spite of his fame, he remained a legendary teacher, known for the care and attention he gave to his students, poets such as James Wright, Carolyn Kizer, Tess Gallagher, and Richard Hugo. Roethke died on August 1, 1963, while swimming in a friend's pool.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e\"But before I'm reduced to an absolute pulp by my own ambivalence, I must say goodbye. The old lion perisheth. Nymphs, I wish you the swoops of many fish. May your search for the abiding be forever furious.\"\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eOn Poetry and Craft\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eI am overwhelmed by the beautiful disorder of poetry, the eternal virginity of words.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe poem, even a short time after being written, seems no miracle; unwritten, it seems something beyond the capacity of the gods.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWe can't escape what we are, and I'm afraid many of my notions about verse (I haven't too many) have been conditioned by the fact that for nearly 25 years I've been trying to teach the young something about the nature of verse by writing it--and that with very little formal knowledge of the subject or previous instruction. So it's going to be lik\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Copper Canyon Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 04\/01\/2001\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781556591563\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 210\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.74lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.99h x 6.01w x 0.67d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 05\/15\/2001 pg. 124\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eReference and Research Bk News\u003c\/i\u003e 02\/01\/2002 pg. 222\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Theodore Roethke","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":36659688210588,"sku":"9781556591563","price":16.15,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_98bf15c1-2f7c-4451-b3bf-9c341b20d280.jpg?v=1603895274","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/on-poetry-and-craft-selected-prose-9781556591563","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}