Word: ashberyã
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...Ashbery??s poems were published in the Advocate during his time at Harvard, but his real breakthrough came post-graduation. His poetic debut, “Some Trees,” was selected by Auden to be published as part of the Yale Series of Younger Poets in 1956, kick-starting a prolific career distinguished by the release of another critically acclaimed work every few years. It was in 1975 that major recognition arrived, however, when he bagged all three of the nation’s major poetry prizes—the Pulitzer, the National Book Critics Circle...
...wasn’t always so clear that a career in writing was Ashbery??s calling. In high school, he wanted to be a painter, until he was awarded an anthology of twentieth-century poetry for winning an essay contest. Reading the work was a transformative experience, and he entered college determined to concentrate in English...
...Ashbery addresses 16th century painter Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola: “Whose curved hand controls, / Francesco, the turning seasons and the thoughts / That peel off and fly away at breathless speeds / Like the last stubborn leaves ripped / From wet branches?” The lines are typical Ashbery??both contemplative and frenzied, an ecstasy of stillness...
...that he’s retired from teaching at the various university writing programs where he taught in the ’70s and ’80s, Ashbery??s daily schedule is relatively relaxed. He spends much of his day at home in Hudson or New York City reading books of poetry sent to him by publishers, keeping up with current events, and listening to music, mostly twentieth century classical pieces by composers like John Cage and Elliott Carter. “I’m very disorganized,” he laughs...
...Ashbery??s own life has indeed been one of many dimensions. Though he chuckles when asked why he thinks he’s receiving the award (“Somebody at Harvard must think I do something for the ‘public good.’”), he notes the poetic justice of capping his career with a medal from the institution where he got his start. “It’s very nice to get something from Harvard, where I set out from long ago,” he says...