Jay Wright (poet)
Encyclopedia
Jay Wright is an African-American poet
, playwright
, and essayist. Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico
, he currently lives in Bradford, Vermont
. Although his work is not as widely known as other American poets of his generation, it has received considerable critical acclaim. Wright's work is emblematic of what the Guyanese
-British
writer Wilson Harris
has termed the "cross-cultural imagination."
minor league team the San Diego Padres
.
After his baseball career, Wright studied comparative literature at the University of California, Berkeley
, and Rutgers University
. In the 1960s, he befriended fellow African-American author Henry Dumas
and later wrote the introduction to Dumas's Play Ebony, Play Ivory: Poetry.
Over the years Wright has been poet in residence at Yale University
as well as historically black colleges and universities such as Talladega College
, Tougaloo College
, Texas Southern University
, and the University of Dundee
.
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...
, playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
, and essayist. Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
, he currently lives in Bradford, Vermont
Bradford, Vermont
Bradford is a town in Orange County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,619 at the 2000 census.-History:The first settler was John Hosmer in 1765...
. Although his work is not as widely known as other American poets of his generation, it has received considerable critical acclaim. Wright's work is emblematic of what the Guyanese
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
-British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
writer Wilson Harris
Wilson Harris
Sir Theodore Wilson Harris is a Guyanese writer. He initially wrote poetry, but has since become a well-known novelist and essayist. His writing style is often said to be abstract and densely metaphorical, and his subject matter wide-ranging.Wilson Harris was born in New Amsterdam in what was then...
has termed the "cross-cultural imagination."
Career
Before embarking on his writing career, Wright played professional baseball, mostly with the Pacific Coast LeaguePacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League is a minor-league baseball league operating in the Western, Midwestern and Southeastern United States. Along with the International League and the Mexican League, it is one of three leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball.The...
minor league team the San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres (PCL)
The San Diego Padres were a minor league baseball team which played in the Pacific Coast League from 1936 through 1968. The team that would eventually become the Padres was well traveled prior to moving to San Diego. It began its existence in 1903 as the Sacramento Solons, a charter member of the PCL...
.
After his baseball career, Wright studied comparative literature at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, and Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
. In the 1960s, he befriended fellow African-American author Henry Dumas
Henry Dumas
Henry Dumas was an African American writer and poet.Dumas was born in Sweet Home, Arkansas in 1934 and he lived there until the age of ten, when he moved to New York City; however, he always kept with him the religious and folk traditions of his hometown. In Harlem, he attended public school and...
and later wrote the introduction to Dumas's Play Ebony, Play Ivory: Poetry.
Over the years Wright has been poet in residence at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
as well as historically black colleges and universities such as Talladega College
Talladega College
- External Links :* -- Official web site*...
, Tougaloo College
Tougaloo College
Tougaloo College is a private, co-educational, liberal arts institution of higher education founded in 1869, in Madison County, north of Jackson, Mississippi, USA.Academically, Tougaloo College has received high ranks in recent years...
, Texas Southern University
Texas Southern University
Texas Southern University is a historically black university located in Houston, Texas, United States....
, and the University of Dundee
University of Dundee
The University of Dundee is a university based in the city and Royal burgh of Dundee on eastern coast of the central Lowlands of Scotland and with a small number of institutions elsewhere....
.
Awards
- 1986 John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation "Genius" Fellowship
- 1996 Fellowship of the Academy of American PoetsAcademy of American PoetsThe Academy of American Poets is a non-profit organization dedicated to the art of poetry. The Academy was incorporated as a "membership corporation" in New York State in 1934...
- 2005 Bollingen Prize in Poetry, becoming the first African-American writer to be so honored
- 2006 American Book AwardAmerican Book AwardThe American Book Award was established in 1978 by the Before Columbus Foundation. It seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre...
Lifetime Achievement Award from the Before Columbus FoundationBefore Columbus FoundationThe Before Columbus Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1976 by Ishmael Reed, Victor Hernández Cruz, Shawn Wong and Rudolfo Anaya to be "a multi-ethnic organizing dedicated to promoting a pan-cultural view of America," especially through the promotion of multicultural writers.One of...
.