Screeno: Stories & Poems
by Delmore Schwartz
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Delmore Schwartz (1913-1966) was one of the finest writers of his generation. Winner of the prestigious Bollingen prize and the Poetry Society of America's Shelley Memorial Award, he was hailed by John Ashbery as one of the major twentieth-century poets. Schwartz's stories were also widely read and loved, admired by James Atlas for their unique style that enabled Schwartz to depict his characters with a sort of childlike verisimilitude. Graced with an introduction by Cynthia Ozick, this New show more Directions Bibelot, Screeno: Stories and Poems, gathers many of Schwartz's most popular stories and poems, including: Screeno, In Dreams Begin Responsibilities, America, America and The Heavy Bear who Goes with Me. Also included is a newly discovered story, The Heights of Joy, which appeared in the magazine Boulevard in 2002. Delmore Schwartz's life is legendary; yet it is his work that endures: What complicates and enriches Schwartz's comedy, says Irving Howe, is, I think, a reaching out toward nobility, a shy aspiring spirituality, a moment or two of achieved purity of feeling. show lessTags
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Schwartz has always been a shadowy figure venerated in certain circles I have been peripheral to, so this New Directions pocket edition seemed a good place to start. It's interesting finally to see what the fuss was about: the troubled Schwartz was a gifted poet who managed somehow to combine romanticist lyricism with a skeptical, metaphysical slant on perception and art (he studied philosophy with AN Whitehead at Harvard). The title story and the justly famous "In Dreams Begin Responsiblities," meanwhile, are harrowing urban fables related in a dry yet distinctive tone. With a brief, sturdy 2002 introduction by Cynthia Ozick.
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31+ Works 985 Members
Delmore Schwartz was born on December 8, 1913 in Brooklyn, New York. He later attended the University of Wisconsin, New York University and Harvard University. He was considered one of the most influential Jewish writers during World War II. He wrote poems, short stories, and literary criticism. His works include In Dreams Begin Responsibilities, show more The Imitation of Life, The World Is a Wedding, and Successful Love and Other Stories. In 1959, he received the Bollingen Prize for Summer Knowledge: New and Selected Poems. He was an editor for the Partisan Review and The New Republic. He also taught creative writing at several universities including Harvard University, Syracuse University, Princeton University and Kenyon College. He suffered from alcohol addiction and mental illness later in life. He died of a heart attack on July 11, 1966 at the age of 52. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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New Directions Bibelots (985)
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