上海交通大学：《英美名诗赏析》教学资源_期末论文_诗人生平.docx_大学文库

Lives of Six Poets(at www.poets..orq)中文介绍参考百度百科 William Blake William Blake was born in London on November 28,1757,to James,a hosier,and Catherine Blake.Two of his six siblings died in infancy.From early childhood,Blake spoke of having visions-at four he saw God "put his head to the window";around age nine,while walking dathrough the countryside,he saw a tree filled with angels. Although his parents tried to discourage him from"lying,"they did observe that he was different from his peers and did not force him to attend conventional school.He learned to read and write at home.At age ten,Blake expressed a wish to become a painter,so his parents sent him to drawing school.Two years later,Blake began writing poetry.When he turned fourteen,he apprenticed with an engraver because art school proved too costly.One of Blake's assignments as apprentice was to sketch the tombs at Westminster Abbey,exposing him to a variety of Gothic styles from which he would draw inspiration throughout his career.After his seven-year term ended,he studied briefly at the Royal Academy. In 1782,he married an illiterate woman named Catherine Boucher.Blake taught her to read and to write,and also instructed her in draftsmanship.Later,she helped him print the illuminated poetry for which he is remembered today;the couple had no children.In 1784 he set up a printshop with a friend and former fellow apprentice, James Parker,but this venture failed after several years.For the remainder of his life,Blake made a meager living as an engraver and illustrator for books and magazines.In addition to his wife,Blake also began training his younger brother Robert in drawing,painting,and engraving.Robert fell ill during the winter of 1787 and succumbed,probably to consumption.As Robert died,Blake saw his brother's spirit rise up through the ceiling,"clapping its hands for joy."He believed that Robert's spirit continued to visit him and later claimed that in a dream Robert taught him the printing method that he used in Songs of Innocence and other"illuminated" works

Lives of Six Poets(at www.poets.org)中文介绍参考百度百科 William Blake William Blake was born in London on November 28, 1757, to James, a hosier, and Catherine Blake. Two of his six siblings died in infancy. From early childhood, Blake spoke of having visions—at four he saw God "put his head to the window"; around age nine, while walking dathrough the countryside, he saw a tree filled with angels. Although his parents tried to discourage him from "lying," they did observe that he was different from his peers and did not force him to attend conventional school. He learned to read and write at home. At age ten, Blake expressed a wish to become a painter, so his parents sent him to drawing school. Two years later, Blake began writing poetry. When he turned fourteen, he apprenticed with an engraver because art school proved too costly. One of Blake's assignments as apprentice was to sketch the tombs at Westminster Abbey, exposing him to a variety of Gothic styles from which he would draw inspiration throughout his career. After his seven-year term ended, he studied briefly at the Royal Academy. In 1782, he married an illiterate woman named Catherine Boucher. Blake taught her to read and to write, and also instructed her in draftsmanship. Later, she helped him print the illuminated poetry for which he is remembered today; the couple had no children. In 1784 he set up a printshop with a friend and former fellow apprentice, James Parker, but this venture failed after several years. For the remainder of his life, Blake made a meager living as an engraver and illustrator for books and magazines. In addition to his wife, Blake also began training his younger brother Robert in drawing, painting, and engraving. Robert fell ill during the winter of 1787 and succumbed, probably to consumption. As Robert died, Blake saw his brother's spirit rise up through the ceiling, "clapping its hands for joy." He believed that Robert's spirit continued to visit him and later claimed that in a dream Robert taught him the printing method that he used in Songs of Innocence and other "illuminated" works

Blake's first printed work,Poetical Sketches(1783),is a collection of apprentice verse,mostly imitating classical models.The poems protest against war,tyranny, and King George III's treatment of the American colonies.He published his most popular collection,Songs of Innocence,in 1789 and followed it,in 1794,with Songs of Experience.Some readers interpret Songs of Innocence in a straightforward fashion,considering it primarily a children's book,but others have found hints at parody or critique in its seemingly naive and simple lyrics.Both books of Songs were printed in an illustrated format reminiscent of illuminated manuscripts.The text and illustrations were printed from copper plates,and each picture was finished by hand in watercolors. Blake was a nonconformist who associated with some of the leading radical thinkers of his day,such as Thomas Paine and Mary Wollstonecraft.In defiance of 18th-century neoclassical conventions,he privileged imagination over reason in the creation of both his poetry and images,asserting that ideal forms should be constructed not from observations of nature but from inner visions.He declared in one poem,"I must create a system or be enslaved by another man's."Works such as "The French Revolution"(1791),"America,a Prophecy"(1793),"Visions of the Daughters of Albion"(1793),and "Europe,a Prophecy"(1794)express his opposition to the English monarchy,and to 18th-century political and social tyranny in general.Theological tyranny is the subject of The Book of Urizen(1794).In the prose work The Marriage of Heaven and Hell(1790-93),he satirized oppressive authority in church and state,as well as the works of Emanuel Swedenborg,a Swedish philosopher whose ideas once attracted his interest. In 1800 Blake moved to the seacoast town of Felpham,where he lived and worked until 1803 under the patronage of William Hayley.He taught himself Greek,Latin, Hebrew,and Italian,so that he could read classical works in their original language. In Felpham he experienced profound spiritual insights that prepared him for his mature work,the great visionary epics written and etched between about 1804 and 1820.Milton(1804-08),Vala,or The Four Zoas(1797;rewritten after 1800), and Jerusalem(1804-20)have neither traditional plot,characters,rhyme,nor meter.They envision a new and higher kind of innocence,the human spirit triumphant over reason. Blake believed that his poetry could be read and understood by common people,but he was determined not to sacrifice his vision in order to become popular.In 1808 he exhibited some of his watercolors at the Royal Academy,and in May of 1809 he exhibited his works at his brother James's house.Some of those who saw the exhibit praised Blake's artistry,but others thought the paintings "hideous"and more than a few called him insane.Blake's poetry was not well known by the general public,but he was mentioned in A Biographical Dictionary of the Living Authors of Great Britain and Ireland,published in 1816.Samuel Taylor Coleridge,who had been lent a copy of Songs of Innocence and of Experience,considered Blake a"man of Genius,"and Wordsworth made his own copies of several songs.Charles Lamb sent a copy of

Blake's first printed work, Poetical Sketches (1783), is a collection of apprentice verse, mostly imitating classical models. The poems protest against war, tyranny, and King George III's treatment of the American colonies. He published his most popular collection, Songs of Innocence, in 1789 and followed it, in 1794, with Songs of Experience. Some readers interpret Songs of Innocence in a straightforward fashion, considering it primarily a children's book, but others have found hints at parody or critique in its seemingly naive and simple lyrics. Both books of Songs were printed in an illustrated format reminiscent of illuminated manuscripts. The text and illustrations were printed from copper plates, and each picture was finished by hand in watercolors. Blake was a nonconformist who associated with some of the leading radical thinkers of his day, such as Thomas Paine and Mary Wollstonecraft. In defiance of 18th-century neoclassical conventions, he privileged imagination over reason in the creation of both his poetry and images, asserting that ideal forms should be constructed not from observations of nature but from inner visions. He declared in one poem, "I must create a system or be enslaved by another man's." Works such as "The French Revolution" (1791), "America, a Prophecy" (1793), "Visions of the Daughters of Albion" (1793), and "Europe, a Prophecy" (1794) express his opposition to the English monarchy, and to 18th-century political and social tyranny in general. Theological tyranny is the subject of The Book of Urizen (1794). In the prose work The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (1790-93), he satirized oppressive authority in church and state, as well as the works of Emanuel Swedenborg, a Swedish philosopher whose ideas once attracted his interest. In 1800 Blake moved to the seacoast town of Felpham, where he lived and worked until 1803 under the patronage of William Hayley. He taught himself Greek, Latin, Hebrew, and Italian, so that he could read classical works in their original language. In Felpham he experienced profound spiritual insights that prepared him for his mature work, the great visionary epics written and etched between about 1804 and 1820. Milton (1804-08), Vala, or The Four Zoas (1797; rewritten after 1800), and Jerusalem (1804-20) have neither traditional plot, characters, rhyme, nor meter. They envision a new and higher kind of innocence, the human spirit triumphant over reason. Blake believed that his poetry could be read and understood by common people, but he was determined not to sacrifice his vision in order to become popular. In 1808 he exhibited some of his watercolors at the Royal Academy, and in May of 1809 he exhibited his works at his brother James's house. Some of those who saw the exhibit praised Blake's artistry, but others thought the paintings "hideous" and more than a few called him insane. Blake's poetry was not well known by the general public, but he was mentioned in A Biographical Dictionary of the Living Authors of Great Britain and Ireland, published in 1816. Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who had been lent a copy of Songs of Innocence and of Experience, considered Blake a "man of Genius," and Wordsworth made his own copies of several songs. Charles Lamb sent a copy of

Around this time,Keats met Leigh Hunt,an influential editor of the Examiner,who published his sonnets"On First Looking into Chapman's Homer"and "O Solitude."Hunt also introduced Keats to a circle of literary men,including the poets Percy Bysshe Shelley and William Wordsworth.The group's influence enabled Keats to see his first volume,Poems by John Keats,published in 1817.Shelley,who was fond of Keats,had advised him to develop John Keats a more substantial body of work before publishing it.Keats,who inBright Star:was not as fond of Shelley,did not follow his advice.Endymion,a "A poem needs four-thousand-line erotic/allegorical romance based on the Greek understanding myth of the same name,appeared the following year.Two of the through the most influential critical magazines of the time,the Quarterly senses.The Review and Blackwood's Magazine,attacked the collection.Calling point of diving the romantic verse of Hunt's literary circle "the Cockney school of in a lake is not poetry,"Blackwood's declared Endymion to be nonsense and immediately to recommended that Keats give up poetry.Shelley,who privately swim to the disliked Endymion but recognized Keats's genius,wrote a more shore..." favorable review,but it was never published.Shelley also exaggerated the effect that the criticism had on Keats,attributing his declining health over the following years to a spirit broken by the negative reviews. Keats spent the summer of 1818 on a walking tour in Northern England and Scotland,returning home to care for his brother,Tom,who suffered from tuberculosis.While nursing his brother,Keats met and fell in love with a woman named Fanny Brawne.Writing some of his finest poetry between 1818 and 1819, Keats mainly worked on "Hyperion,"a Miltonic blank-verse epic of the Greek creation myth.He stopped writing "Hyperion"upon the death of his brother,after completing only a small portion,but in late 1819 he returned to the piece and rewrote it as"The Fall of Hyperion"(unpublished until 1856).That same autumn Keats contracted tuberculosis,and by the following February he felt that death was already upon him,referring to the present as his "posthumous existence. In July 1820,he published his third and best volume of poetry,Lamia,Isabella,The Eve of St.Agnes,and Other Poems.The three title poems,dealing with mythical and legendary themes of ancient,medieval,and Renaissance times,are rich in imagery and phrasing.The volume also contains the unfinished "Hyperion,"and three poems considered among the finest in the English language,"Ode on a Grecian Urn,""Ode on Melancholy,and "Ode to a Nightingale."The book received enthusiastic praise from Hunt,Shelley,Charles Lamb,and others,and in August,Frances Jeffrey, influential editor of the Edinburgh Review,wrote a review praising both the new book and Endymion. The fragment "Hyperion"was considered by Keats's contemporaries to be his greatest achievement,but by that time he had reached an advanced stage of his

Around this time, Keats met Leigh Hunt, an influential editor of the Examiner, who published his sonnets "On First Looking into Chapman's Homer" and "O Solitude." Hunt also introduced Keats to a circle of literary men, including the poets Percy Bysshe Shelley and William Wordsworth. The group's influence enabled Keats to see his first volume, Poems by John Keats, published in 1817. Shelley, who was fond of Keats, had advised him to develop a more substantial body of work before publishing it. Keats, who was not as fond of Shelley, did not follow his advice. Endymion, a four-thousand-line erotic/allegorical romance based on the Greek myth of the same name, appeared the following year. Two of the most influential critical magazines of the time, the Quarterly Review and Blackwood's Magazine, attacked the collection. Calling the romantic verse of Hunt's literary circle "the Cockney school of poetry," Blackwood's declared Endymion to be nonsense and recommended that Keats give up poetry. Shelley, who privately disliked Endymion but recognized Keats's genius, wrote a more favorable review, but it was never published. Shelley also exaggerated the effect that the criticism had on Keats, attributing his declining health over the following years to a spirit broken by the negative reviews. Keats spent the summer of 1818 on a walking tour in Northern England and Scotland, returning home to care for his brother, Tom, who suffered from tuberculosis. While nursing his brother, Keats met and fell in love with a woman named Fanny Brawne. Writing some of his finest poetry between 1818 and 1819, Keats mainly worked on "Hyperion," a Miltonic blank-verse epic of the Greek creation myth. He stopped writing "Hyperion" upon the death of his brother, after completing only a small portion, but in late 1819 he returned to the piece and rewrote it as "The Fall of Hyperion" (unpublished until 1856). That same autumn Keats contracted tuberculosis, and by the following February he felt that death was already upon him, referring to the present as his "posthumous existence." In July 1820, he published his third and best volume of poetry, Lamia, Isabella, The Eve of St. Agnes, and Other Poems. The three title poems, dealing with mythical and legendary themes of ancient, medieval, and Renaissance times, are rich in imagery and phrasing. The volume also contains the unfinished "Hyperion," and three poems considered among the finest in the English language, "Ode on a Grecian Urn," "Ode on Melancholy," and "Ode to a Nightingale." The book received enthusiastic praise from Hunt, Shelley, Charles Lamb, and others, and in August, Frances Jeffrey, influential editor of the Edinburgh Review, wrote a review praising both the new book and Endymion. The fragment "Hyperion" was considered by Keats's contemporaries to be his greatest achievement, but by that time he had reached an advanced stage of his John Keats inBright Star: "A poem needs understanding through the senses. The point of diving in a lake is not immediately to swim to the shore

disease and was too ill to be encouraged.He continued a correspondence with Fanny Brawne and-when he could no longer bear to write to her directly-her mother,but his failing health and his literary ambitions prevented their getting married.Under his doctor's orders to seek a warm climate for the winter,Keats went to Rome with his friend,the painter Joseph Severn.He died there on February 23, 1821,at the age of twenty-five,and was buried in the Protestant cemetery. See more at:http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/66#sthash.1IBYHJPp.dpuf W.B.Yeats Born in Dublin,Ireland,in 1865,William Butler Yeats was the son of a well-known Irish painter,John Butler Yeats.He spent his childhood in County Sligo,where his parents were raised,and in London.He returned to Dublin at the age of fifteen to continue his education and study painting,but quickly discovered he preferred poetry.Born into the Anglo-Irish landowning class,Yeats became involved with the Celtic Revival,a movement against the cultural influences of English rule in Ireland during the Victorian period,which sought to promote the spirit of Ireland's native heritage.Though Yeats never learned Gaelic himself,his writing at the turn of the century drew extensively from sources in Irish mythology and folklore.Also a potent influence on his poetry was the Irish revolutionary Maud Gonne,whom he met in 1889,a woman equally famous for her passionate nationalist politics and her beauty. Though she married another man in 1903 and grew apart from Yeats(and Yeats himself was eventually married to another woman,Georgie Hyde Lees),she remained a powerful figure in his poetry. Yeats was deeply involved in politics in Ireland,and in the twenties,despite Irish independence from England,his verse reflected a pessimism about the political situation in his country and the rest of Europe,paralleling the increasing conservativism of his American counterparts in London,T.S.Eliot and Ezra Pound. His work after 1910 was strongly influenced by Pound,becoming more modern in its

disease and was too ill to be encouraged. He continued a correspondence with Fanny Brawne and—when he could no longer bear to write to her directly—her mother, but his failing health and his literary ambitions prevented their getting married. Under his doctor's orders to seek a warm climate for the winter, Keats went to Rome with his friend, the painter Joseph Severn. He died there on February 23, 1821, at the age of twenty-five, and was buried in the Protestant cemetery. - See more at: http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/66#sthash.1lBYHJPp.dpuf W. B. Yeats Born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1865, William Butler Yeats was the son of a well-known Irish painter, John Butler Yeats. He spent his childhood in County Sligo, where his parents were raised, and in London. He returned to Dublin at the age of fifteen to continue his education and study painting, but quickly discovered he preferred poetry. Born into the Anglo-Irish landowning class, Yeats became involved with the Celtic Revival, a movement against the cultural influences of English rule in Ireland during the Victorian period, which sought to promote the spirit of Ireland's native heritage. Though Yeats never learned Gaelic himself, his writing at the turn of the century drew extensively from sources in Irish mythology and folklore. Also a potent influence on his poetry was the Irish revolutionary Maud Gonne, whom he met in 1889, a woman equally famous for her passionate nationalist politics and her beauty. Though she married another man in 1903 and grew apart from Yeats (and Yeats himself was eventually married to another woman, Georgie Hyde Lees), she remained a powerful figure in his poetry. Yeats was deeply involved in politics in Ireland, and in the twenties, despite Irish independence from England, his verse reflected a pessimism about the political situation in his country and the rest of Europe, paralleling the increasing conservativism of his American counterparts in London, T. S. Eliot and Ezra Pound. His work after 1910 was strongly influenced by Pound, becoming more modern in its

concision and imagery,but Yeats never abandoned his strict adherence to traditional verse forms.He had a life-long interest in mysticism and the occult, which was off-putting to some readers,but he remained uninhibited in advancing his idiosyncratic philosophy,and his poetry continued to grow stronger as he grew older.Appointed a senator of the Irish Free State in 1922,he is remembered as an important cultural leader,as a major playwright(he was one of the founders of the famous Abbey Theatre in Dublin),and as one of the very greatest poets-in any language-of the century.W.B.Yeats was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1923 and died in 1939 at the age of 73. Emily Dickinson In 1830,Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst,Massachusetts.She attended Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in South Hadley,but only for one year.Throughout her life,she seldom left her house and visitors were few.The people with whom she did come in contact,however,had an enormous impact on her poetry.She was particularly stirred by the Reverend Charles Wadsworth,whom she met on a trip to Philadelphia.He left for the West Coast shortly after a visit to her home in 1860,and some critics believe his departure gave rise to the heartsick flow of verse from Dickinson in the years that followed.While it is certain that he was an important figure in her life,it is not certain that this was in the capacity of romantic love-she called him"my closest earthly friend."Other possibilities for the unrequited love in Dickinson's poems include Otis P.Lord,a Massachusetts Supreme Court Judge,and Samuel Bowles,editor of the Springfield Republican. By the 1860s,Dickinson lived in almost total physical isolation from the outside world,but actively maintained many correspondences and read widely.She spent a great deal of this time with her family.Her father,Edward Dickinson,was actively involved in state and national politics,serving in Congress for one term.Her brother Austin attended law school and became an attorney,and lived next door with his wife Susan Gilbert.Dickinson's younger sister Lavinia also lived at home for her

concision and imagery, but Yeats never abandoned his strict adherence to traditional verse forms. He had a life-long interest in mysticism and the occult, which was off-putting to some readers, but he remained uninhibited in advancing his idiosyncratic philosophy, and his poetry continued to grow stronger as he grew older. Appointed a senator of the Irish Free State in 1922, he is remembered as an important cultural leader, as a major playwright (he was one of the founders of the famous Abbey Theatre in Dublin), and as one of the very greatest poets—in any language—of the century. W. B. Yeats was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1923 and died in 1939 at the age of 73. Emily Dickinson In 1830, Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts. She attended Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in South Hadley, but only for one year. Throughout her life, she seldom left her house and visitors were few. The people with whom she did come in contact, however, had an enormous impact on her poetry. She was particularly stirred by the Reverend Charles Wadsworth, whom she met on a trip to Philadelphia. He left for the West Coast shortly after a visit to her home in 1860, and some critics believe his departure gave rise to the heartsick flow of verse from Dickinson in the years that followed. While it is certain that he was an important figure in her life, it is not certain that this was in the capacity of romantic love—she called him "my closest earthly friend." Other possibilities for the unrequited love in Dickinson’s poems include Otis P. Lord, a Massachusetts Supreme Court Judge, and Samuel Bowles, editor of the Springfield Republican. By the 1860s, Dickinson lived in almost total physical isolation from the outside world, but actively maintained many correspondences and read widely. She spent a great deal of this time with her family. Her father, Edward Dickinson, was actively involved in state and national politics, serving in Congress for one term. Her brother Austin attended law school and became an attorney, and lived next door with his wife Susan Gilbert. Dickinson’s younger sister Lavinia also lived at home for her

entire life in similar isolation.Lavinia and Austin were not only family,but intellectual companions during Dickinson's lifetime. Dickinson's poetry reflects her loneliness and the speakers of her poems generally live in a state of want.Her poems are also marked by the intimate recollection of inspirational moments which are decidedly life-giving and suggest the possibility of happiness.Her work was heavily influenced by the Metaphysical poets of seventeenth-century England,as well as her reading of the Book of Revelation and her upbringing in a Puritan New England town which encouraged a Calvinist, orthodox,and conservative approach to Christianity. She admired the poetry of Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning,as well as John Keats.Though she was dissuaded from reading the verse of her contemporary Walt Whitman by rumor of its disgracefulness,the two poets are now connected by the distinguished place they hold as the founders of a uniquely American poetic voice. While Dickinson was extremely prolific as a poet and regularly enclosed poems in letters to friends,she was not publicly recognized during her lifetime.The first volume of her work was published posthumously in 1890 and the last in 1955.She died in Amherst in 1886. Upon her death,Dickinson's family discovered 40 handbound volumes of nearly 1800 of her poems,or"fascicles"as they are sometimes called.These booklets were made by folding and sewing five or six sheets of stationery paper and copying what seem to be final versions of poems in an order that many critics believe to be more than chronological.The handwritten poems show a variety of dash-like marks of various sizes and directions(some are even vertical).The poems were initially unbound and published according to the aesthetics of her many early editors, removing her unusual and varied dashes and replacing them with traditional punctuation.The current standard version replaces her dashes with a standard "n-dash,which is a closer typographical approximation of her writing.Furthermore, the original order of the works was not restored until 1981,when Ralph W.Franklin used the physical evidence of the paper itself to restore her order,relying on smudge marks,needle punctures and other clues to reassemble the packets.Since then,many critics have argued for thematic unity in these small collections, believing the ordering of the poems to be more than chronological or convenient.The Manuscript Books of Emily Dickinson (Belknap Press,1981) remains the only volume that keeps the order intact. Walt Whitman

entire life in similar isolation. Lavinia and Austin were not only family, but intellectual companions during Dickinson’s lifetime. Dickinson's poetry reflects her loneliness and the speakers of her poems generally live in a state of want. Her poems are also marked by the intimate recollection of inspirational moments which are decidedly life-giving and suggest the possibility of happiness. Her work was heavily influenced by the Metaphysical poets of seventeenth-century England, as well as her reading of the Book of Revelation and her upbringing in a Puritan New England town which encouraged a Calvinist, orthodox, and conservative approach to Christianity. She admired the poetry of Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, as well as John Keats. Though she was dissuaded from reading the verse of her contemporary Walt Whitman by rumor of its disgracefulness, the two poets are now connected by the distinguished place they hold as the founders of a uniquely American poetic voice. While Dickinson was extremely prolific as a poet and regularly enclosed poems in letters to friends, she was not publicly recognized during her lifetime. The first volume of her work was published posthumously in 1890 and the last in 1955. She died in Amherst in 1886. Upon her death, Dickinson's family discovered 40 handbound volumes of nearly 1800 of her poems, or "fascicles" as they are sometimes called. These booklets were made by folding and sewing five or six sheets of stationery paper and copying what seem to be final versions of poems in an order that many critics believe to be more than chronological. The handwritten poems show a variety of dash-like marks of various sizes and directions (some are even vertical). The poems were initially unbound and published according to the aesthetics of her many early editors, removing her unusual and varied dashes and replacing them with traditional punctuation. The current standard version replaces her dashes with a standard "n-dash," which is a closer typographical approximation of her writing. Furthermore, the original order of the works was not restored until 1981, when Ralph W. Franklin used the physical evidence of the paper itself to restore her order, relying on smudge marks, needle punctures and other clues to reassemble the packets. Since then, many critics have argued for thematic unity in these small collections, believing the ordering of the poems to be more than chronological or convenient. The Manuscript Books of Emily Dickinson (Belknap Press, 1981) remains the only volume that keeps the order intact. Walt Whitman

Born on May 31,1819,Walt Whitman was the second son of Walter Whitman,a housebuilder,and Louisa Van Velsor.The family,which consisted of nine children, lived in Brooklyn and Long Island in the 1820s and 1830s. At the age of twelve,Whitman began to learn the printer's trade,and fell in love with the written word.Largely self-taught,he read voraciously,becoming acquainted with the works of Homer,Dante,Shakespeare,and the Bible. Whitman worked as a printer in New York City until a devastating fire in the printing district demolished the industry.In 1836,at the age of 17,he began his career as teacher in the one-room school houses of Long Island.He continued to teach until 1841,when he turned to journalism as a full-time career. He founded a weekly newspaper,Long-Islander,and later edited a number of Brooklyn and New York papers.In 1848,Whitman left the Brooklyn Daily Eagle to become editor of the New Orleans Crescent.It was in New Orleans that he experienced at first hand the viciousness of slavery in the slave markets of that city. On his return to Brooklyn in the fall of 1848,he founded a"free soil"newspaper, the Brooklyn Freeman,and continued to develop the unique style of poetry that later so astonished Ralph Waldo Emerson. In 1855,Whitman took out a copyright on the first edition of Leaves of Grass,which consisted of twelve untitled poems and a preface.He published the volume himself, and sent a copy to Emerson in July of 1855.Whitman released a second edition of the book in 1856,containing thirty-three poems,a letter from Emerson praising the first edition,and a long open letter by Whitman in response.During his subsequent career,Whitman continued to refine the volume,publishing several more editions of the book. At the outbreak of the Civil War,Whitman vowed to live a"purged"and "cleansed" life.He wrote freelance journalism and visited the wounded at New York-area hospitals.He then traveled to Washington,D.C.in December 1862 to care for his brother who had been wounded in the war

Born on May 31, 1819, Walt Whitman was the second son of Walter Whitman, a housebuilder, and Louisa Van Velsor. The family, which consisted of nine children, lived in Brooklyn and Long Island in the 1820s and 1830s. At the age of twelve, Whitman began to learn the printer's trade, and fell in love with the written word. Largely self-taught, he read voraciously, becoming acquainted with the works of Homer, Dante, Shakespeare, and the Bible. Whitman worked as a printer in New York City until a devastating fire in the printing district demolished the industry. In 1836, at the age of 17, he began his career as teacher in the one-room school houses of Long Island. He continued to teach until 1841, when he turned to journalism as a full-time career. He founded a weekly newspaper, Long-Islander, and later edited a number of Brooklyn and New York papers. In 1848, Whitman left the Brooklyn Daily Eagle to become editor of the New Orleans Crescent. It was in New Orleans that he experienced at first hand the viciousness of slavery in the slave markets of that city. On his return to Brooklyn in the fall of 1848, he founded a "free soil" newspaper, the Brooklyn Freeman, and continued to develop the unique style of poetry that later so astonished Ralph Waldo Emerson. In 1855, Whitman took out a copyright on the first edition of Leaves of Grass, which consisted of twelve untitled poems and a preface. He published the volume himself, and sent a copy to Emerson in July of 1855. Whitman released a second edition of the book in 1856, containing thirty-three poems, a letter from Emerson praising the first edition, and a long open letter by Whitman in response. During his subsequent career, Whitman continued to refine the volume, publishing several more editions of the book. At the outbreak of the Civil War, Whitman vowed to live a "purged" and "cleansed" life. He wrote freelance journalism and visited the wounded at New York-area hospitals. He then traveled to Washington, D.C. in December 1862 to care for his brother who had been wounded in the war

Dartmouth College in 1892,and later at Harvard,though he never earned a formal degree Frost drifted through a string of occupations after leaving school,working as a teacher,cobbler,and editor of the Lawrence Sentinel.His first professional poem, "My Butterfly,"was published on November 8,1894,in the New York newspaper The Independent. In 1895,Frost married Elinor Miriam White,who became a major inspiration in his poetry until her death in 1938.The couple moved to England in 1912,after their New Hampshire farm failed,and it was abroad that Frost met and was influenced by such contemporary British poets as Edward Thomas,Rupert Brooke,and Robert Graves.While in England,Frost also established a friendship with the poet Ezra Pound,who helped to promote and publish his work. By the time Frost returned to the United States in 1915,he had published two full-length collections,A Boy's Will and North of Boston,and his reputation was established.By the nineteen-twenties,he was the most celebrated poet in America, and with each new book-including New Hampshire(1923),A Further Range(1936),Steeple Bush(1947),and In the Clearing(1962)-his fame and honors(including four Pulitzer Prizes)increased. Though his work is principally associated with the life and landscape of New England, and though he was a poet of traditional verse forms and metrics who remained steadfastly aloof from the poetic movements and fashions of his time,Frost is anything but a merely regional or minor poet.The author of searching and often dark meditations on universal themes,he is a quintessentially modern poet in his adherence to language as it is actually spoken,in the psychological complexity of his portraits,and in the degree to which his work is infused with layers of ambiguity and irony. In a 1970 review of The Poetry of Robert Frost,the poet Daniel Hoffman describes Frost's early work as "the Puritan ethic turned astonishingly lyrical and enabled to say out loud the sources of its own delight in the world,"and comments on Frost's career as The American Bard:"He became a national celebrity,our nearly official Poet Laureate,and a great performer in the tradition of that earlier master of the literary vernacular,Mark Twain." About Frost,President John F.Kennedy said,"He has bequeathed his nation a body of imperishable verse from which Americans will forever gain joy and understanding." Robert Frost lived and taught for many years in Massachusetts and Vermont,and died in Boston on January 29,1963

Dartmouth College in 1892, and later at Harvard, though he never earned a formal degree. Frost drifted through a string of occupations after leaving school, working as a teacher, cobbler, and editor of the Lawrence Sentinel. His first professional poem, "My Butterfly," was published on November 8, 1894, in the New York newspaper The Independent. In 1895, Frost married Elinor Miriam White, who became a major inspiration in his poetry until her death in 1938. The couple moved to England in 1912, after their New Hampshire farm failed, and it was abroad that Frost met and was influenced by such contemporary British poets as Edward Thomas, Rupert Brooke, and Robert Graves. While in England, Frost also established a friendship with the poet Ezra Pound, who helped to promote and publish his work. By the time Frost returned to the United States in 1915, he had published two full-length collections, A Boy's Will and North of Boston, and his reputation was established. By the nineteen-twenties, he was the most celebrated poet in America, and with each new book—including New Hampshire (1923), A Further Range (1936), Steeple Bush (1947), and In the Clearing (1962)—his fame and honors (including four Pulitzer Prizes) increased. Though his work is principally associated with the life and landscape of New England, and though he was a poet of traditional verse forms and metrics who remained steadfastly aloof from the poetic movements and fashions of his time, Frost is anything but a merely regional or minor poet. The author of searching and often dark meditations on universal themes, he is a quintessentially modern poet in his adherence to language as it is actually spoken, in the psychological complexity of his portraits, and in the degree to which his work is infused with layers of ambiguity and irony. In a 1970 review of The Poetry of Robert Frost, the poet Daniel Hoffman describes Frost's early work as "the Puritan ethic turned astonishingly lyrical and enabled to say out loud the sources of its own delight in the world," and comments on Frost's career as The American Bard: "He became a national celebrity, our nearly official Poet Laureate, and a great performer in the tradition of that earlier master of the literary vernacular, Mark Twain." About Frost, President John F. Kennedy said, "He has bequeathed his nation a body of imperishable verse from which Americans will forever gain joy and understanding." Robert Frost lived and taught for many years in Massachusetts and Vermont, and died in Boston on January 29, 1963