Sylvia Plath left behind a complicated legacy. Contemporary writers influenced by her work must juggle inspiration with some problematic imagery – as a poetry expert explains.
As opponents of the Whitehaven Colliery protest, an expert on the cultural history of British landscapes revisits an 18th-century poem that reminds us of the town’s industrious spirit.
French has historically been a language of human rights. That’s why the Québec government should promote it as a tool of a human rights-based civic education, not force it on newcomers.
Raphael Falco, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Because Dylan draws from songs from the past, he has been accused of plagiarism. But this view has been colored by a distorted understanding of the creative process.
The public image of Gwen Harwood as a suburban housewife is belied by the raw sensuality of her erotic poetry. And in her personal life, she claimed her right to move – and love – where she would.
Amy Cannon, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
Ada Limón is the first woman of Mexican ancestry to be named U.S. poet laureate. Through her understanding of social media and the power of connection, she strives to make poetry accessible to everyone.
Sarah C. E. Ross, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
Poets once wrote their verse in “blood” or “wounds” when a king or queen died. On the eve of Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral, what has happened to the epic art of elegy?
Selby Wynn Schwartz’s inventive, poetic reimagining of lives like those of Virginia Woolf and Sarah Bernhardt – against a backdrop of Sappho – has just been longlisted for the Booker Prize.