Astral Facts, January 2009
Astral: (Theosophy) Consisting of, belonging to, or designating, a kind of supersensible substance alleged to be next above the tangible world in refinement; as, astral spirits; astral bodies of persons; astral current.
Astral: (Theosophy) Consisting of, belonging to, or designating, a kind of supersensible substance alleged to be next above the tangible world in refinement; as, astral spirits; astral bodies of persons; astral current.
The War by the Words
In case you missed it, some controversy has swirled around the recent inauguration of President Obama and the poem composed and read to celebrate the event, for someone other than the Poet Laureate was chosen for this honor.
Poet Laureate? You ask!
In case you missed it, some controversy has swirled around the recent inauguration of President Obama and the poem composed and read to celebrate the event, for someone other than the Poet Laureate was chosen for this honor.
Poet Laureate? You ask!
Who and what is that?
This question and issue came this past week in my class when we read “The Charge of the Light Brigade” by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, who was England’s poet laureate at the time (1854).
Tennyson wrote this to commemorate a battle in the Crimean War. Thus, even though the event itself was an error caused when the messenger to the Light Brigade did not realize his horse had shifted position and he pointed toward the heavily manned Russian gun batteries half a league to the East rather than the closer British position under pressure from a smaller Russian attack, Tennyson’s poem transformed the view of the misdirected charge into a rallying cry for several generations! Certainly a master spin doctor!
You may recall these words:
Someone had blunder’d
Their’s not to make reply,
Their’s not to reason why
Their’s but to do and die. (lines 12-15)
Essentially, the Poet Laureate is the National Poet, perhaps seen as the literary secretary of state.
Does the United States have such a position?
Tennyson wrote this to commemorate a battle in the Crimean War. Thus, even though the event itself was an error caused when the messenger to the Light Brigade did not realize his horse had shifted position and he pointed toward the heavily manned Russian gun batteries half a league to the East rather than the closer British position under pressure from a smaller Russian attack, Tennyson’s poem transformed the view of the misdirected charge into a rallying cry for several generations! Certainly a master spin doctor!
You may recall these words:
Someone had blunder’d
Their’s not to make reply,
Their’s not to reason why
Their’s but to do and die. (lines 12-15)
Essentially, the Poet Laureate is the National Poet, perhaps seen as the literary secretary of state.
Does the United States have such a position?
Yes, in 1937 under the FDR administration Josef Auslander was appointed as the first “Consultant in Poetry.”
Since then 50 people (including multiple appointments) have served in this position. The current Poet Laureate, Kay Ryan, was appointed by the Library of Congress last summer. Here is a link to the government website:
http://www.loc.gov/poetry/about_laureate.html
However, President Obama selected Elisabeth Alexander as the inaugural poet to compose and present her poem on the occasion.
Here is a link to the text itself:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/20/us/politics/20text-poem.html?ref=books
So here’s the Jeopardy question, to be answered in the form of an answer: How many times have we had an “inaugural poet” and how many of these have not been the Poet Laureate at the time?
Amazingly enough, the correct answer is only four times!
Since then 50 people (including multiple appointments) have served in this position. The current Poet Laureate, Kay Ryan, was appointed by the Library of Congress last summer. Here is a link to the government website:
http://www.loc.gov/poetry/about_laureate.html
However, President Obama selected Elisabeth Alexander as the inaugural poet to compose and present her poem on the occasion.
Here is a link to the text itself:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/20/us/politics/20text-poem.html?ref=books
So here’s the Jeopardy question, to be answered in the form of an answer: How many times have we had an “inaugural poet” and how many of these have not been the Poet Laureate at the time?
Amazingly enough, the correct answer is only four times!
For JFK, both of Bill Clinton’s inaugurations, and now for President Obama!
And none of them was Poet Laureate at the time.
The most memorable event was Robert Frost’s performance at JFK’s inauguration. Frost, who was 87 at the time, was blinded by the bright sunshine off the snow and could not read the faint type on the copy of the poem he had composed, “Dedication,” so he recited from memory another poem, “The Gift Outright,” which he had written in 1942.
The most memorable event was Robert Frost’s performance at JFK’s inauguration. Frost, who was 87 at the time, was blinded by the bright sunshine off the snow and could not read the faint type on the copy of the poem he had composed, “Dedication,” so he recited from memory another poem, “The Gift Outright,” which he had written in 1942.
Those two are featured at this website: http://www.oodlesofinformation.com/robert-frost/
Who were the other two inaugural poets for Bill Clinton?
Who were the other two inaugural poets for Bill Clinton?
Maya Angelou and Miller Williams.
Walter Lowe
Astral Facts is a monthly presentation of Humanities Science, produced in the bowels of the Humanities Science offices.
Walter Lowe
Astral Facts is a monthly presentation of Humanities Science, produced in the bowels of the Humanities Science offices.
