     |
Nationally recognized poet Jay Wright to read at College's Norton Center
DANVILLE, KY—The Centre College English Program will sponsor a public poetry reading by nationally recognized poet Jay Wright on Oct. 18 at 7:30 p.m. in the Norton Center Boardroom.
Described by poet Harold Bloom as "nothing less than a great poet," Jay Wright was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico in 1935. Wright played minor-league baseball
before studying literature at the University of California at Berkeley and Rutgers University.
Lisa Williams, assistant professor of English at Centre, describes Wright's poetry as "lyrical, musically intense, and imagistically vivid.'
Wright's cultural roots greatly influence the images and metaphors of his poetry. Williams adds, "I know of no other contemporary poet who has challenged himself as much as Wright has throughout his career to venture into new territory, which makes his poetry innovative and constantly surprising. In many poems we see him seeking to connect with and reimagine the ancient cultures and oral traditions of Mexico, Latin
America, and Africa as he investigates his own identity and his relationship to the past."
A resident of Vermont, Wright has received numerous awards, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, a MacArthur Fellowship, and the fellowship from the Academy of
American poets. Wright was named the 2005 winner of Yale University's Bollingen Prize for American Poetry. He is the first African-American to win this distinguished honor.
Wright's books of poetry include Transfigurations: Collected Poems, Boleros, Selected Poems of Jay Wright, Explications/Interpretations, Elaine's Book, The Double Invention of Komo, Dimensions of History, Soothsayers and Omens, and The Homecoming Singer.
-end-
Founded in 1819, Centre College is ranked among the U.S. News top 50 national liberal arts colleges. Centre alumni, known for their nation-leading loyalty in annual financial support, include two U.S. vice presidents and two Supreme Court justices. For more, visit http://www.centre.edu/web/elevatorspeech/
For news archives go to http://www.centre.edu/web/news/newsarchive.html.
Communications Office
Centre College
600 W. Walnut Street
Danville, KY 40422
Public Information Coordinator: Telephone 859-238-5714