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Richard Georges

リチャード・ジョージ

Richard Georges

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1982-01-01 （Port of Spain, Trinidad）
Nationality
British Virgin Islands
Languages
English
Residence History
British Virgin Islands (raised and resides)

Career

Occupations
Poet, Academic, College President, Editor
Active Years
2010-
Affiliations
H. Lavity Stoutt Community College (President), MOKO: Caribbean Arts & Letters (Founding Editor)
Influenced By
Kamau Brathwaite, Derek Walcott, Dionne Brand
Nominations
OCM Bocas Prize (longlist 2019)

Education

Texas Christian University
College of Arts and Sciences / English
Degree: B.A. (English)
Country: United States
Aberystwyth University
Creative Writing
Degree: M.A. (Creative Writing)
Country: United Kingdom
University of Sussex
Creative and Critical Writing
Degree: Ph.D. (Creative and Critical Writing)
Year of Graduation: 2017
Country: United Kingdom
PhD thesis: "Charting the sea in Caribbean poetry: Kamau Brathwaite, Derek Walcott, Dionne Brand, Alphaeus Norman, Verna Penn Moll, and Richard Georges."

Awards

Poet Laureate of the British Virgin Islands
2020
Organization: Government of the British Virgin Islands
Result: 任命
OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature
2020
Work: Epiphaneia
Category: 詩（部門賞）および総合賞
Organization: Bocas Lit Fest / OCM
Result: 受賞（詩部門および総合賞）
Forward Prizes for Poetry (Felix Dennis Prize for Best First Collection)
2017
Work: Make Us All Islands
Category: 最優秀初詩集（ショートリスト）
Organization: Forward Arts Foundation
Result: ショートリスト
Forward Prizes for Poetry (Highly Commended)
2018
Work: Giant
Category: Highly Commended
Organization: Forward Arts Foundation
Result: 高い評価（Highly Commended）

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Make Us All Islands

2017 Poetry

A collection of poems that weaves the sensual textures of the sea with Caribbean history and memory, addressing personal and communal histories as well as contemporary events such as storms and the climate crisis.

seaislandsmemoryclimate crisis

Giant

2018 Poetry

A further exploration of the relationship between sea, self and community. The collection received high commendation from the Forward Prizes.

seacommunitytraumapolitical history

Epiphaneia

2019 Poetry

Published in 2019, this collection engages with hurricanes, natural disaster and the violent histories of the Caribbean while seeking forms of renewal. It won the poetry category and the overall OCM Bocas Prize.

stormsrenewalhistorical violencesea

Bibliography

  • Make Us All Islands (2017)
  • Giant (2018)
  • Epiphaneia (2019)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Rich, image-driven depictions of the seaMusical and rhythmic elements influenced by rap and lyrical formsA critical engagement with historical and political themes
Recurring Motifs
seaislandsstorms/hurricanesmemory and intergenerational inheritancetraces of colonialism

Legacy

Richard Georges, appointed the first Poet Laureate of the British Virgin Islands, is recognized as a leading voice in Caribbean literature. His collection 'Epiphaneia' won the OCM Bocas Prize, marking him as a significant contemporary Caribbean poet.

In Popular Culture

  • TEDxTortola talk "The power of poetry"

Quotes

  • I found myself falling in love with images and rhyme and would find parallels between writers like Walcott and Eliot with lyrical rappers like Nas and Eminem.
    Source: Forward Arts Foundation (profile/interview)

Trivia

  • Appointed the first Poet Laureate of the British Virgin Islands.
  • Serves as President of H. Lavity Stoutt Community College.
  • Founding editor of MOKO: Caribbean Arts & Letters.