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James Laughlin Biography

Poet

James Laughlin was an American poet known for his unique poetic style and contributions to modern poetry. His works blended free verse with traditional poetic forms, winning him the admiration of readers.

Thinking World Deals Knowing Reader Excuse Not Knowing No Excuses American Poetry

Author:James Laughlin

“Every now and then, I strike something that just goes click, you know, in my head. As Gertrude Stein used to say, it rings the bell, and I feel, this is great.”

Knows Feels Used Strikes Rings Bells Now And Then Clicks Gertrude

Author:James Laughlin

“I think most people read and re-read the things that they have liked. That's certainly true in my case. I re-read Pound a great deal, I re-read Williams, I re-read Thomas, I re-read the people whom I cam to love when I was at what you might call a formative stage.”

People Thinking Might Deals Cases Stage Pounds

Author:James Laughlin

“I think that concrete poetry seems to have, as far as I can see, come to a kind of a dead end. It doesn't seem to be going any further than it went in its high period of about five or six years ago.”

Thinking Years Kind I Can Ends Seems Five Periods Six Years Ago Concrete Dead Ends

Author:James Laughlin

“I think that is where poetry reading becomes such an individual thing. I mean I have friend who like poets who just don't say anything to me at all, I mean they seem to me rather ordinary and pedestrian.”

Thinking Mean Seems Reading Individual Poet Ordinary Say Anything Pedestrians Poetry Reading

Author:James Laughlin

“I think there is a great difference, in that when the poet is reading you get the whole personality of the person, especially if he's a good reader. Whereas a person just sitting gets what he puts into it.”

Ifs Thinking Persons Whole Reading Differences Poet Personality Reader Sitting

Author:James Laughlin

“I think we will always have the impulse towards visual poetry with us, and I wouldn't agree with Bly that it's a bad thing. It depends on the ability of the individual poet to do it well, and to make a shape which is interesting enough to hold your attention.”

Thinking Wells Enough Individual Ability Interesting Attention Poet Depends Shapes Agree Impulse Visuals Bad Things

Author:James Laughlin

“Concrete poets continue to turn out beautiful things, but to me they're more visual than oral, and they almost really belong on the wall rather than in a book. I haven't the least idea of where poetry is going.”

Book Ideas Beautiful Turns Havens Poet Wall Visuals Poetry Is Concrete Beautiful Things

Author:James Laughlin

“It's all well and good to say that Germans were all responsible for the concentration camps, but I don't think they were. I think that was the work of a small group of fiends.”

Thinking Wells Groups Responsible Concentration Camps Small Groups Concentration Camp

Author:James Laughlin

“With me it's the whole thing, it's the conceit, the idea, what the poem is saying. And it goes on just as long as is necessary to say what needs to be said.”

Needs Long Said Ideas Whole Goes On Conceit

Author:James Laughlin

“[Gertrude Stein] really needed someone like Virgil Thomson, whom she respected, to sit on her a bit and make her devise some plot.”

Bits Needed Plot Gertrude Needed Someone

Author:James Laughlin

“Of course a poem is a two-way street. No poem is any good if it doesn't suggest to the reader things from his own mind and recollection that he will read into it, and will add to what the poet has suggested. But I do think poetry readings are very important.”

Ifs Thinking Way Mind Two Important Courses Reading Streets Poet Reader Add Two Ways Recollection Two Way Street Poetry Reading

Author:James Laughlin

“I try to write in plain brown blocks of American speech but occasionally set in an ancient word or a strange word just to startle the reader a little bit and to break up the monotony of the plain American cadence.”

Writing Trying Littles Bits Break Strange Reader Speech Little Bit Ancient Block Brown Break Up Monotonous Monotony Cadence

Author:James Laughlin

“I often feel I'm working in a vacuum, or in a country where few readers hear the sounds.”

Feels Country Sound Reader Vacuums

Author:James Laughlin

“I think one ages and one dates. I tend to have a good deal of difficulty in liking some of the new poets.”

Thinking Age Deals Poet Difficulty

Author:James Laughlin

“We do very little re-writing in the office. We often take on people who show great promise and who we hope will develop into somebody important and someone good.”

People Writing Littles Important Shows Promise Office

Author:James Laughlin

“I do read everything that we publish. We usually have to have two or three votes for a book before we take it on. So in that sense I suppose it is an orchestra.”

Two Book Three Vote Orchestra Publish

Author:James Laughlin

About the Author

Born: October 30, 1914
Died: November 12, 1997
Known for: Poet
Quotes: 17

Books & Sources

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