The New Yorker: Poetry Amy Woolard Reads Charles Wright
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May 15, 2024 Amy Woolard reads 'Via Negativa' by Charles Wright, discussing its spiritual and Virginia-centric themes. They explore the elegance and complexity of poetry analysis, delving into the unspeakable spiritual landscape. Themes of love, loss, place, and belonging are vividly explored in the poems, offering insights into life's uncertainties and the creation of meaningful art.
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Poetry Mentor Influence
- Amy Woolard calls Charles Wright her “poetry dad” and recounts him as one of her first teachers at UVA.
- She credits his breadth and mentorship for shaping her poetic voice and sensibility.
Landscape As Spiritual Medium
- Charles Wright blends high and low diction to create a singular voice mixing the sacred and the colloquial.
- That voice uses landscape as a medium to gesture toward the unspeakable and spiritual longing.
Practice Meter For Musical Lines
- Practice meter deliberately even when poems feel spontaneous; Woolard recalls Wright assigning 50 lines of iambic pentameter.
- Treat that discipline as musical training that deepens line craftsmanship.