Marvin Bell
Encyclopedia
Marvin Bell is an American poet
and teacher who was the first Poet Laureate of the State of Iowa
.
Bell was born in New York City and raised in Center Moriches, Long Island
. He earned his bachelor's degree from Alfred University
, his master's degree from the University of Chicago
, and an MFA from the University of Iowa Writers' Workshop.
He is the author of more than 16 books of poetry. Notable books of poetry including The Book of the Dead Man (Copper Canyon, 1994) and Ardor: The Book of the Dead Man, Vol. 2. (Copper Canyon, 1997)
Bell's second book, A Probable Volume of Dreams, was awarded the prestigious Lamont Poetry Selection of the Academy of American Poets in 1969. Other honors for his work include Guggenheim and NEA fellowships, and Fullbright appointments in Yugoslavia and Australia. In 2000 Bell was appointed as the first Poet Laureate for the state of Iowa.
Bell taught for many years at the Iowa Writers' Workshop
as the Flannery O'Connor Professor of Letters. He currently is an emeritus faculty member. Over a long career Bell has held numerous visiting lectureships at universities, including Goddard College
, Oregon State University
, the University of Hawaii
, and the University of Washington
. He currently serves on the faculty of the Masters in Fine Arts in writing program at Pacific University
in Oregon.
Bell's list of former students include Marilyn Chin
, Rita Dove
, Norman Dubie
, James Galvin
, Jorie Graham
, Joy Harjo
, David St. John
, and James Tate
.
Bell has written poems protesting the Afghanistan and Iraq wars and given readings for Poets Against War.http://at-lamp.its.uiowa.edu/virtualwu/index.php/archive/record/poets_against_the_war_reading/
He currently lives in Port Townsend
, Washington and Iowa City.
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...
and teacher who was the first Poet Laureate of the State of Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
.
Bell was born in New York City and raised in Center Moriches, Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
. He earned his bachelor's degree from Alfred University
Alfred University
Alfred University is a small, comprehensive university in the Village of Alfred in Western New York, USA, an hour and a half south of Rochester and two hours southeast of Buffalo. Alfred has an undergraduate population of around 2,000, and approximately 300 graduate students...
, his master's degree from the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, and an MFA from the University of Iowa Writers' Workshop.
He is the author of more than 16 books of poetry. Notable books of poetry including The Book of the Dead Man (Copper Canyon, 1994) and Ardor: The Book of the Dead Man, Vol. 2. (Copper Canyon, 1997)
Bell's second book, A Probable Volume of Dreams, was awarded the prestigious Lamont Poetry Selection of the Academy of American Poets in 1969. Other honors for his work include Guggenheim and NEA fellowships, and Fullbright appointments in Yugoslavia and Australia. In 2000 Bell was appointed as the first Poet Laureate for the state of Iowa.
Bell taught for many years at the Iowa Writers' Workshop
Iowa Writers' Workshop
The Program in Creative Writing, more commonly known as the Iowa Writers' Workshop, at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, is a highly regarded graduate-level creative writing program in the United States...
as the Flannery O'Connor Professor of Letters. He currently is an emeritus faculty member. Over a long career Bell has held numerous visiting lectureships at universities, including Goddard College
Goddard College
Goddard College is a private, liberal arts college located in Plainfield, Vermont, offering undergraduate and graduate degree programs. Goddard College currently operates on an intensive low-residency model...
, Oregon State University
Oregon State University
Oregon State University is a coeducational, public research university located in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. The university offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees and a multitude of research opportunities. There are more than 200 academic degree programs offered through the...
, the University of Hawaii
University of Hawaii
The University of Hawaii System, formally the University of Hawaii and popularly known as UH, is a public, co-educational college and university system that confers associate, bachelor, master, and doctoral degrees through three university campuses, seven community college campuses, an employment...
, and the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
. He currently serves on the faculty of the Masters in Fine Arts in writing program at 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...
in Oregon.
Bell's list of former students include Marilyn Chin
Marilyn Chin
Marilyn Chin is an American poet who grew up in Portland, Oregon, after her family immigrated from Hong Kong. She received an M.F.A. from the University of Iowa. Her awards include two National Endowment for the Arts grants, the Stegner Fellowship, the PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award,...
, Rita Dove
Rita Dove
Rita Frances Dove is an American poet and author. From 1993-1995 she served as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress, a position now popularly known as "U.S. Poet Laureate"...
, Norman Dubie
Norman Dubie
Norman Dubie is an American poet.-Life:He is the author of more than eighteen books, often assuming historical personae in his works...
, James Galvin
James Galvin (poet)
James Galvin is an American poet. He has published six collections of poetry, most recently As Is , "X: Poems," and Resurrection Update, Collected Poems, 1975-1997 which was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Award, the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize, and the Poet’s Prize...
, Jorie Graham
Jorie Graham
Jorie Graham is an American poet. The U.S. Poetry Foundation suggests "She is perhaps the most celebrated poet of the American post-war generation". She replaced poet Seamus Heaney as Boylston Professor at Harvard, becoming the first woman to be appointed to this position...
, Joy Harjo
Joy Harjo
Joy Harjo is a Native American poet, musician, and author of ancestry. Known primarily as a poet, Harjo has also taught at the college level, played alto saxophone with a band called Poetic Justice, edited literary journals, and written screenplays. She is a member of the Muscogee Nation and...
, David St. John
David St. John
-Biography:Born in Fresno, California, he was educated at California State University, Fresno, where he studied with poet Philip Levine, and at the University of Iowa, receiving an M.F.A. in 1974...
, and James Tate
James Tate (writer)
James Tate is an American poet whose work has earned him the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. He is a professor of English at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters...
.
Bell has written poems protesting the Afghanistan and Iraq wars and given readings for Poets Against War.http://at-lamp.its.uiowa.edu/virtualwu/index.php/archive/record/poets_against_the_war_reading/
He currently lives in Port Townsend
Port Townsend, Washington
Port Townsend is a city in Jefferson County, Washington, United States, approximately north-northwest of Seattle . The population was 9,113 at the 2010 census an increase of 9.3% over the 2000 census. It is the county seat and only incorporated city of Jefferson County...
, Washington and Iowa City.
Honors
- American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Literature
- Guggenheim and National Endowment for the Arts fellowships
- Senior Fulbright appointments to Yugoslavia and Australia
- Flannery O'Connor Professor of Letters at the University of Iowa
- Iowa's first Poet Laureate
- National Book Award Finalist
- Lamont Poetry Selection of the Academy of American Poets
External links
- Academy of American Poets: Marvin Bell
- Iowa Poet Laureate Acceptance Speech
- Willow Springs: "Willow Springs Interviews Marvin Bell"
- The Poetry Kit: "The Poetry Kit Interviews Marvin Bell"
- Marvin Bell's "Dead Man Camouflage Poem" http://bobolinkbooks.googlepages.com/marvinbell
- Marvin Bell's "Why Do You Stay Up So Late" with animation by Ernesto Lavandera http://www.bornmagazine.org/projects/whystayup/project.html
- Copper Canyon Press