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Poet Stanley Kunitz at Columbia's Dodge Hall in 1995
Photo by Amy Callahan
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Stanley Kunitz, who taught at Columbia for 22 years, has been named Poet Laureate of the United States Library of Congress. Beginning as a lecturer in English in 1963, he was a professor of Writing in Columbia's School of the Arts from 1968 to 1985, and continues to maintain close ties with the Writing Division as a lecturer and friend.
Kunitz, whose first poem appeared in 1930, has written 10 books of verse. In October, "The Collected Poems of Stanley Kunitz," will be published by W. W. Norton. His selected poems, "Passing Through" won the National Book Award in l995, one of many honors he has received, including the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. As the nation's newest Poet Laureate, Kunitz is also its oldest--he has just turned 95.
The announcement was made Monday by James Billington, Librarian of Congress. In a statement, he said that Kunitz "continues to be a mentor and model for several generations of poets, and he brings uniquely to the office of Poet Laureate a full lifetime of commitment to poetry."
The nonagenarian is the 10th laureate in an impressive succession. He follows Robert Penn Warren, Richard Wilbur, Howard Nemerov, Mark Strand, Joseph Brodsky, Mona Van Duyn, Rita Dove and Robert Hass. Robert Pinsky has been Poet Laureate for the last three years.
News of Kunitz's appointment met with great enthusiasm from faculty members of Columbia's Writing Division. Professor Alice Quinn, who in addition to her teaching duties is poetry editor at The New Yorker, said "Stanley is a glorious poet and a glorious human being, and this comes across whenever he reads. At The New Yorker Festival this past May, 2800 people came to hear our poets, and after Stanley read just three poems, the audience gave him a thunderous standing ovation. And this was in 93 degree heat!"
This fall, Kunitz will take part in Quinn's "Poets on Poets" class, which includes a public reading at Miller Theatre on November 29th.
In an interview with The Washington Post on July 29, his birthday, Kunitz said, "In my work, at this age, this is gratifying and astonishing. I must say, I was not prepared for that call." Kunitz, who spoke from his summer house in Provincetown, Mass., also commented that "an artist must reckon with the age in which he lives. "
"Everything affects poetry," he said, "including rap. I don't doubt that the poetry of the future, as even today, is influenced by the rap culture--just as in the 19th century poets who really initiated the Romantic movement were influenced by the street ballads."
As Poet Laureate, Kunitz will earn $35,000 a year, maintain an office at the Library of Congress and preside over special occasions--a reading in the fall and a lecture in the spring. He will also consult and speak on poetry-related matters.
Kunitz has been a senior fellow at the National Endowment for the Arts, the state poet of New York and a chancellor emeritus of the Academy of American Poets. He previously served the Library of Congress as its poetry adviser from 1974 to 1976, a position that later evolved into Poet Laureate.
In 1985, the U.S. Congress created the office of Poet Laureate as poetry consultant to the Library of Congress. The appointment is made by the Librarian of Congress and is not a lifetime position.
When Kunitz comes to Miller Theatre on November 29, he will read poems of his own and poems by William Blake as part of Alice Quinn's class "Poets on Poets." In its third year, the course brings contemporary poets to campus to discuss the work of favorite predecessors. Professor Quinn said, "It's a great privilege to listen to Stanley on the subject of Wiliam Blake, his spiritual forbear."
In addition to meeting with students at the Graduate School of the Arts, the poets also give public readings at Miller Theatre. Other poets participating in the public evenings this fall include Eamon Grennan, Glyn Maxwell, Marie Ponsot, and Robert Pinsky, the most recent Poet Laureate. A complete schedule will be posted after August 15 at http://www.millertheatre.com, or the public may call the Box Office at 854-7799.
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