Doug Anderson (poet)
Encyclopedia
Doug Anderson is an American poet
, fiction writer, and memoirist. His most recent book is a memoir, Keep Your Head Down: Vietnam, the Sixties, and a Journey of Self-Discovery (W.W. Norton, 2009). His honors include grants and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts
, the Massachusetts Artists Foundation, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, Poets & Writers, and the MacDowell Colony
. His work has appeared in Ploughshares, the Connecticut Review, The Massachusetts Review, Virginia Quarterly, The Southern Review, Field, and The Autumn House Anthology of American Poetry, as well as this year’s Contemporary American War Poetry. He also published a play, Short Timers, which was produced in New York in 1981.
He served in Vietnam
as a corpsman with a Marine
infantry battalion in 1967. He graduated from the University of Arizona
. He worked in the theater, as an actor. He then settled in Northampton, Massachusetts
, where he began to write plays and poems in a workshop with Jack Gilbert
, and Linda Gregg
. Anderson taught at the University of Connecticut
, Eastern Connecticut State University
, the William Joiner Center for the Study of War and Its Social Consequences, Mount Wachusett Community College
and at a Massachusetts state prison. He is completing a book called Loose Cantos. In 2010 he began teaching in the Pacific University
of Oregon MFA Program.
Chapbooks
Anthology publications
Memoir
Keep Your Head Down: Vietnam, The Sixties, and a Journey of Self-Discovery
to the Bible
.
Blues for Unemployed Secret Police, was praised by Booklist
for its “powerful, funny-horrific, brutal-tender poems.”
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, fiction writer, and memoirist. His most recent book is a memoir, Keep Your Head Down: Vietnam, the Sixties, and a Journey of Self-Discovery (W.W. Norton, 2009). His honors include grants and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
, the Massachusetts Artists Foundation, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, Poets & Writers, and the MacDowell Colony
MacDowell Colony
The MacDowell Colony is an art colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire, U.S.A., founded in 1907 by Marian MacDowell, pianist and wife of composer Edward MacDowell. She established the institution and its endowment chiefly with donated funds...
. His work has appeared in Ploughshares, the Connecticut Review, The Massachusetts Review, Virginia Quarterly, The Southern Review, Field, and The Autumn House Anthology of American Poetry, as well as this year’s Contemporary American War Poetry. He also published a play, Short Timers, which was produced in New York in 1981.
He served in Vietnam
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
as a corpsman with a Marine
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
infantry battalion in 1967. He graduated from the University of Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
. He worked in the theater, as an actor. He then settled in Northampton, Massachusetts
Northampton, Massachusetts
The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population of Northampton's central neighborhoods, was 28,549...
, where he began to write plays and poems in a workshop with Jack Gilbert
Jack Gilbert
-Life and career:Born and raised in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania neighborhood of East Liberty, he attended Peabody High School then worked as a door-to-door salesman, an exterminator, and a steelworker...
, and Linda Gregg
Linda Gregg
Linda Alouise Gregg is an American poet.-Biography:Although born just miles northwest of New York City, Ms. Gregg grew up on the other side of the country, in Marin County, California. She received both her Bachelor of Arts, in 1967, and her Master of Arts, in 1972, from San Francisco State College...
. Anderson taught at the University of Connecticut
University of Connecticut
The admission rate to the University of Connecticut is about 50% and has been steadily decreasing, with about 28,000 prospective students applying for admission to the freshman class in recent years. Approximately 40,000 prospective students tour the main campus in Storrs annually...
, Eastern Connecticut State University
Eastern Connecticut State University
Eastern Connecticut State University is a public, coeducational liberal arts university and is a member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges. Eastern is located in Willimantic, Connecticut on . Founded in 1889, it is the second-oldest campus in the Connecticut State University System...
, the William Joiner Center for the Study of War and Its Social Consequences, Mount Wachusett Community College
Mount Wachusett Community College
Mount Wachusett Community College is a two-year community college in Gardner, Massachusetts. It offers associate degrees as well as a transfer program for students to earn credits for transfer to other colleges...
and at a Massachusetts state prison. He is completing a book called Loose Cantos. In 2010 he began teaching in the Pacific University
Pacific University
Pacific University is a private university located in Oregon, United States. The first campus began more than 160 years ago and is located about 38 km west of Portland in Forest Grove...
of Oregon MFA Program.
Honors and awards
- Pushcart Prize
- NEA grant
- Massachusetts Cultural Council Fellowship
- 1995 Kate Tufts Discovery Award for The Moon Reflected Fire
Published works
Full-length poetry collectionsChapbooks
- Cry Wolf (Azul Editions)
Anthology publications
Memoir
Keep Your Head Down: Vietnam, The Sixties, and a Journey of Self-Discovery
Reviews
Joyce Peseroff writes that The Moon Reflected Fire is “not just about Vietnam but resonant with the history of warriors from the backyard to the IliadIliad
The Iliad is an epic poem in dactylic hexameters, traditionally attributed to Homer. Set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states, it tells of the battles and events during the weeks of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles...
to the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
.
Blues for Unemployed Secret Police, was praised by Booklist
Booklist
Booklist is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. It is geared toward libraries and booksellers and is available in print or online...
for its “powerful, funny-horrific, brutal-tender poems.”