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Richard L. Kenney

リチャード・ケニー

Richard L. Kenney

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1948-08-10 （Glens Falls, New York, United States）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Port Townsend, Washington, United States

Career

Occupations
Poet, Professor
Active Years
1983-
Affiliations
University of Washington (Department of English)
Influenced By
James Merrill, W. B. Yeats, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Robert Lowell, Philip Larkin, John McPhee, Samuel Beckett, James Joyce, Ezra Pound, Greco-Roman mythologies

Education

Dartmouth College
Period: 1966-1970
Year of Graduation: 1970
Country: United States
After graduation won a Reynolds Fellowship and studied Celtic lore
Reynolds Fellowship
Period: 1970-1971
Country: United States
Fellowship-supported study of Celtic lore in Ireland, Scotland, and Wales

Awards

Yale Series of Younger Poets Prize
1983
Work: The Evolution of the Flightless Bird
Organization: Yale University Press
Result: 受賞
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship
1985
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: 受賞
Peter I. B. Lavan Younger Poet Award
1986
Organization: Academy of American Poets
Result: 受賞
American Academy in Rome fellowship (literature)
1986
Organization: American Academy in Rome
Result: 受賞
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Fellowship
1987
Organization: John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
Result: 受賞
Lannan Literary Award
1994
Organization: Lannan Foundation
Result: 受賞（賞金付）
Bogliasco Foundation Fellow
2002
Organization: Bogliasco Foundation
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Evolution of the Flightless Bird

1984 Poetry

Debut collection with a foreword by James Merrill. Composed of multiple sections, noted for rich imagery and experimental style.

imagistic sequencesmythnature

Orrery

1985 Poetry (contains long poems)

Consists of over 70 poems divided into three main sections: 'Hours', 'Apples', and 'Physics'. Features farm-based experiences and centers on time and nature.

timememorynature vs. mechanization

The Invention of the Zero

1993 Long poem / Poetry

A long-form work written over roughly ten years. Examines the history of the universe from the Big Bang to the invention of computers and the atomic bomb, questioning invention's ethical consequences.

technology and humanityhistory and cosmosethics of invention

The One-Strand River

Poetry

Specific details unknown. Listed as one of Kenney's published poetry titles.

Terminator

Poetry

Specific details unknown. Included in lists of Kenney's books but publication year and content unclear.

Bibliography

  • The Evolution of the Flightless Bird (1984)
  • Orrery (1985)
  • The Invention of the Zero (1993)
  • The One-Strand River
  • Terminator

Style & Themes

Literary Style
rich, ornate rhetoricrapid-fire imagistic sequencesfrequent use of scientific and historical diction
Recurring Motifs
timetechnology and inventionmythic allusionsnature and memory

Legacy

Known for an experimental and intellectually ambitious poetic voice, Kenney occupies a distinctive place in contemporary American poetry. Criticism is mixed, but he is often praised for his technical facility and wide-ranging allusions.

Quotes

  • The poetic wheels just spin and spin, getting nowhere fast. But Kenney--it's what one likes best about him--nearly always has an end in view, a story to tell.
    Source: James Merrill, foreword to The Evolution of the Flightless Bird (1984) (1984)
  • The material would grow and retract on a daily basis, and it was definitely an experiment, and emotionally draining. I was on the edge of my powers imaginatively.
    Source: Richard Kenney (on writing The Invention of the Zero) (1993)

Trivia

  • Graduated from Dartmouth College in 1970.
  • Gained prominence after winning the Yale Series of Younger Poets Prize in 1983.
  • Lives in Port Townsend, Washington with his family.