Dear Editor,
Phyllis Rose loves Richard Wilbur’s poetry, she knows why she loves it, and she conveys that enthusiasm and knowledge with admirable directness [“Citizen Poet,” September 2005]. In her appreciation, however, she asserts that, unlike other poets who “force us to observe their ambition” or “attend to their careers,” Wilbur merely devotes himself to gift-giving. But any poet who publishes three editions of collected poems is appealing to readers to attend to his career—that’s precisely what collected editions do. There’s no shame in it for a poet such as Wilbur, who has never mistaken his career for his work, but even Allen Ginsberg only published one edition of collected poems.
Phyllis Rose loves Richard Wilbur’s poetry, she knows why she loves it, and she conveys that enthusiasm and knowledge with admirable directness [“Citizen Poet,” September 2005]. In her appreciation, however, she asserts that, unlike other poets who “force us to observe their ambition” or “attend to their careers,” Wilbur merely devotes himself to gift-giving. But any poet who publishes three editions of collected poems is appealing to readers to attend to his career—that’s precisely what collected editions do. There’s no shame in it for a poet such as Wilbur, who has never mistaken his career for his work, but even Allen Ginsberg only published one edition of collected poems.
Washington, DC
Originally Published: December 31, 2005
Letter to the Editor