When we think of poets, too often we imagine posh parlors, stoic sophistication, and austere attitudes. But the lives, hobbies, and eccentricities of some of the world’s greatest poets made them much more than titans of the turn of phrase. Here are 15 fun facts about some of your favorite poets.
ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING’S LAST WORDS WERE FITTINGLY SWEET.
Many of the Victorian-era writer’s romantic poems, like “How Do I Love Thee?”, were inspired by her beloved husband, poet Robert Browning. And even her death had an air of romance—at 55, she was dying of an undetermined illness (she had spent most of her life in poor health). Browning held her in his arms and asked how she was feeling. Her final word was simply, “Beautiful.”
IN AN EYEBROW-RAISING DEDICATION PAGE, E.E. CUMMINGS ONCE CALLED OUT THOSE WHO SPURNED HIM.
Even after releasing a novel, poetry collections, and plays, American writer E.E. Cummings’s proposed collection 70 Poems was rejected by 14 publishers. With a loan from his mother, he finally managed to publish the book in 1935, but with two noteworthy revisions. First, he changed its title to No Thanks, a reference to the dismissal letters he’d received. And on its dedication page, Cummings printed a concrete poem—a poem written in the shape of a funereal urn, listing the names of every publisher who had rejected him.
SHEL SILVERSTEIN WAS AN AWARD-WINNING SONGWRITER.
Shel Silverstein is best known for his illustrated poetry books for children like Where The Sidewalk Ends and A Light In the Attic, but the American humorist also earned Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations in 1991 for writing the song “I’m Checkin’ Out,” which was performed by Meryl Streep at the end of the movie Postcards From the Edge. Two decades earlier, he won the Grammy for Best Country Song for penning the playful (if violent) “A Boy Named Sue,” which Johnny Cash also won a performance Grammy for.
LANGSTON HUGHES MAY HAVE BEEN A KEY INFLUENCE ON MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.
The popular poet of the Harlem Renaissance and the bold Civil Rights leader were friends who exchanged letters, including one where King told Hughes, “I can no longer count the number of times and places … in which I have read your poems.”
Scholars have long explored how this friendship shaped both men. But English professor Jason Miller illuminates striking similarities, which suggest Hughes’s poem “I Dream A World” may have inspired King’s iconic “I Have a Dream” speech. Hughes wrote, “A world I dream where black or white,/Whatever race you be,/Will share the bounties of the earth/And every man is free.” In comparison, King’s 1953 speech included, “I have a dream that one day … little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walk together as sisters and brothers.”
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Interesting snippets on some of my favourite poets.