Poetry enthusiasts were treated to a free reading from poet Franz Wright yesterday afternoon in the Coolidge Room in Ballou Hall.
Wright, recipient of the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry in 2004, read select poems from his latest collections, "Walking to Martha's Vineyard" and "Ill Lit: Selected and New Poems," as well as several selections from the manuscript of his upcoming collection, currently untitled.
Among the poems read were "Letter" and "One Heart," both of which confront Wright's newfound religious beliefs. Wright also read an untitled poem which touched upon the poet's relationship with his father, acclaimed poet James Wright.
Other poems included "Lemon Grow," "April Orchard" and "Publication Date."
English Professor Deborah Digges intoned poet Rainer Maria Rilke as she introduced the Pulitzer Prize winner to the audience.
"And only if we arrange our lives in accordance with the principle which tells us that we must always trust in the difficult, what now appears to us as the most alien will become our most trusted experience," Digges recited. "Reading 'Walking to Martha's Vineyard' is to feel set free from the burden of the language."
The event, titled the First John Holmes Memorial Poetry Reading, marked the reestablishment of what was at one time a Tufts tradition.
John Holmes, a poet and English professor from 1930-1962, hosted several readings at the University throughout his tenure featuring local poets. These readings included such renowned poets as Robert Frost and John Crowe Ransom
"I feel the honor of initiating the poetry series in honor of a beloved professor here at Tufts," Wright said.
Immediately following the reading, students and faculty had the chance to get their own copies of Wright's collections signed by the poet. The Tufts Bookstore was also selling copies of "Walking to Martha's Vineyard" at the event.
Before the reading, Wright met with students of Digges' poetry-based class, "Architecture of the Imagination."
"To me, [writing] poetry is doing the impossible," Wright said in response to a question regarding the boundaries of writing poetry. "One of my friends said that it is like walking on water - and drowning."
According to Wright, the idea for the title, "Walking to Martha's Vineyard," came simply from a visit he took with his wife to the Cape Cod island.
"As I was walking, I had this great sensation of time breaking down, of time being one big moment," Wright said.
Wright said he feels "almost a physiological change" comes over him when he writes something he considers to be good.
"There is that moment. It is like an incredible blessing, an incredible happiness that you feel that you don't deserve," Wright said.
In total, Wright has written 15 books of his own as well as five books of poetry translations, including the works of Rilke.
In addition to his latest and most celebrated award, Wright has received the PEN/Voelcker Award for Poetry, as well as grants from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Whiting Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Friends of Tufts Libraries and the English Department co-sponsored the event.
Digges, who helped organize the reading, said that Wright is the "real thing" as far as contemporary poets are concerned.
"One thing I'm very attracted to is that Franz is a very solitary worker," Digges said. "He has wrestled his own angels in the dark of his writing room."
Digges also said she felt that students who attended the event would walk away from the reading with a greater appreciation for language, poetry and the way in which the two work together.
"I believe that students will understand a little better the transparency of language and the way in which poetry lives inside the language," Digges said. "This is to say that poetry is not always understandable, but if you are up to it, you'll be transformed."
Sophomore Rachel Ombres, an English major, attended the event in an attempt to experience literature-related events outside of the classroom.
"I feel that this was an opportunity for me, as an English major, to be involved in what I love outside of the classroom," Ombres said. "It was also a great opportunity to familiarize myself with the famous poets of today."
Ombres was also eager to hear contemporary poetry read out loud by the poet himself.
"Although his poems speak on their own, to hear them through the voice of the poet gives them an almost new and frightening character that I wouldn't be able to pick up through reading," she said.
