World Literary Awards

← Back to Home

John Hollander

ジョン・ホランダー

John Hollander

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1929-10-28 (Manhattan)
Died
2013-08-17 (Branford, Connecticut) age 83
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Religion
Judaism
Residence History
Manhattan, New York → Woodbridge, Connecticut → Branford, Connecticut

Career

Occupations
Poet, Literary critic, Professor
Active Years
1953-2013
Affiliations
Yale University, Connecticut College, Hunter College, CUNY Graduate Center, Wesleyan University Press (board member)
Memberships
American Academy of Arts and Letters
Influenced By
Allen Ginsberg, Mark Van Doren, Lionel Trilling
Influenced
Karl Kirchwey, Todd LaRoche

Education

Columbia University (Columbia College)
Literature
Degree: BA, MA
Country: United States
Earned BA and MA
Indiana University
English
Degree: PhD
Country: United States
Earned PhD

Awards

Poet Laureate of the State of Connecticut
2006
Organization: State of Connecticut
Result: 任命
Robert Fitzgerald Prosody Award
2006
Organization: Robert Fitzgerald Prosody Award
Result: 受賞
Philolexian Award for Distinguished Literary Achievement
2002
Organization: Philolexian Society
Result: 受賞
MacArthur Fellowship
1990
Organization: MacArthur Foundation
Result: 受賞
Bollingen Prize
1983
Work: Powers of Thirteen
Organization: Bollingen Prize
Result: 受賞
Yale Series of Younger Poets
1958
Work: A Crackling of Thorns
Organization: Yale University Press
Result: 受賞
Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters (Department of Literature)
1979
Organization: American Academy of Arts and Letters
Result: 選出

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

A Crackling of Thorns

1958 Poetry

Hollander's first collection of poems, notable for formal technique and wit.

formwordplaywit

Powers of Thirteen

1983 Poetry

An extended sequence structured by the number 13 (13×13 stanzas), an experimental work using constraint to fuel imagination.

formal experimentationnumeric structuresound and prosody

Vision and Resonance: Two Senses of Poetic Form

1975 Criticism

A critical work exploring the relationship between poetic form and sound, discussing the connection between composition and the ear.

poeticsmetersound

Rhyme's Reason: A Guide to English Verse

1981 Criticism / Manual

A guide to English verse and prosody emphasizing the musicality of poetry.

prosodyformpoetry pedagogy

Bibliography

  • A Crackling of Thorns (1958)
  • The Untuning of the Sky (1961)
  • Movie-Going (1962)
  • Visions from the Ramble (1965)
  • Types of Shape (1969)
  • Vision and Resonance (1975)
  • Powers of Thirteen (1983)
  • Selected Poetry (1993)
  • A Draft of Light (2008)

Adaptations

  • Philomel — cantata text set to music by Milton Babbitt
  • No More Walks in the Wood — song by the Eagles using Hollander's poem (2007)

Translations by Author

  • Translations from Yiddish

Style & Themes

Literary Style
formalisttechnical prosodic manipulationwitty diction
Recurring Motifs
sound (the ear)voiceform and constraintgraphematic shapes

Legacy

Hollander is regarded as a master of formal technique in late 20th-century American poetry. Emphasizing musicality and formal experimentation, he left a wide influence as poet, critic, and teacher.

Academic Societies

  • American Academy of Arts and Letters

Archives

  • Yale Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library (John Hollander Papers)

In Popular Culture

  • The Eagles used Hollander's poem as the basis for a song (2007)

Quotes

  • A good poem satisfies the ear. It creates a story or picture that grabs you, informs you and entertains you.
    Source: Interview / The New York Times (quoted) (2008)

Trivia

  • He usually wrote poems on a computer but sometimes started poems on napkins or scraps of paper.
  • His poems were set to music by composers such as Milton Babbitt and Elliott Carter.
  • He was the uncle of songwriter Sam Hollander.
  • He was Sterling Professor Emeritus of English at Yale University.