Robert Sward
Encyclopedia
Robert Sward is an American
and Canadian
poet
and novelist. Jack Foley
, in his Introduction to Sward's Collected Poems, 1957-2004 (Black Moss Press, 2004) calls him, "in truth, a citizen, at heart, of both countries. At once a Canadian and American poet, one with a foot in both worlds, Sward also inhabits an enormous in-between." Or, as Rainer Maria Rilke puts it, "Every artist is born in an alien country; he has a homeland nowhere but within his own borders."
, Illinois
, Sward began writing poetry at the age of 15 when he became involved with a street gang and used rhyming couplets in his notes to the other gang members. He graduated from Von Steuben high school
at 17 and quit his job as a soda jerk
in a pharmacy to join the United States Navy
. In 1952 he was stationed in Korea
on an amphibious ship, LST 914. A Yeoman
3rd Class, Sward soon became the head of the ship's library, while serving in the combat zone during the Korean War
.
, 1964-65, where he first experimented with computer-generated poetry and served on the editorial board of Epoch
. He went on to teach at the Iowa Writers' Workshop
, the University of Victoria
, and the University of California, Santa Cruz
. In 1968, he signed the “Writers and Editors War Tax Protest” pledge, vowing to refuse tax payments in protest against the Vietnam War.
, where he interviewed and produced 60-minute radio features on Leonard Cohen
, Margaret Atwood
, Earle Birney
, John Robert Colombo
and other leading Canadian figures. His Quill & Quire
interview with Saul Bellow
was widely read. Sward also worked as journalist
, book reviewer and feature writer for The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail
, and The Financial Times in Toronto
, Ontario
while living on the Toronto Islands
. He received a Canada Council
grant to research and write The Toronto Islands (1983), a best-selling (Source: Dreadnaught Press publisher, 1983) illustrated history of a unique community, from prehistoric times to the present.
, Poetry Chicago, and The Hudson Review
. Sward later worked as technical writer and editor for Santa Cruz Operation (SCO), and served as “bridge person” between traditional hard copy academic periodicals and literary eZines.
. It was followed by Kissing the Dancer (Cornell University Press, 1964), with an Introduction by Pulitzer Prize poet William Meredith
. The Carleton Miscellany reviewed the book saying, "In the animal poems there is a bravery in the face of our limitations, a warmth for our absurdities, a way of life to be gleaned from our failings and ineptitudes... a self-critique that turns our freakishness into an ironic source of fulfillment and transcendence." Source: Theodore Holmes in "The Carleton Miscellany" 1964. The poem, "Uncle Dog: The Poet At 9", has been frequently anthologized and Sward continues to write about exotic animals and dogs in particular. Animated videos of these works (mini-movies with poetry) employ avatars, digital representations of the poet and his subjects, and appear in DVD format and online at Blue's Cruzio Cafe.
A key theme in his most recent books, Rosicrucian in the Basement (2001), Heavenly Sex (2002), The Collected Poems, 1957-2004 (2004), and God is in the Cracks (2006), is fathers and sons. Sward's father, Dr. Irving M. Sward, was a podiatrist and something of a mystic, combining his practice of Rosicrucianism with a study of the Kabbalah. Of Rosicrucian in the Basement, Robert Bly
writes, 'There are many mysteries between father and son that people don't talk about... There's much leaping [in Sward's poetry], but each line, so to speak, steps on something solid.' In commenting on the father and son series Dana Gioia
adds, "The CD is terrific... Rosicrucian in the Basement unfolds perfectly at its own pace and never loses the listener." Source: Robert Sward: Poetry, Review & Interview with Jack Foley," Recorded for KPFA-FM Berkeley, CA with readings from "Heavenly Sex" & "Rosicrucian in the Basement (2002), Uncle Dog Audio, Number 1002 (2002), and The Collected Poems, 1957-2004 (2004).
Garrison Keillor
selected God is in the Cracks, one of the father and son poems and title piece of Sward's 2006 collection, for broadcast on his radio show "Writers Almanac."
http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php?date=2003/03/22
http://jjwebb.ihwy.com/rosycrossfather/godisinthecracks_keillor.mp3
, California
, where he took up residence in 1985, after fourteen years living and working in Canada, primarily in Victoria, B.C. (1969-1979) and on the Toronto Islands (1979-1985). A member of the League of Canadian Poets since 1975, Sward has toured Canada with each of his new books, reviewed and helped bring noted Canadian writers to the U.S.
Sward's five children include Cheryl Cox Macpherson, a Professor of Bioethics; Kamala Joy, an environmental scientist; Michael Sward, a contractor and builder; Hannah Sward, administrative staff, Southwestern Law School; and Nicholas Sward, Hyatt Hotel chef in Toronto.
His literary correspondence and papers are housed at University Libraries, Washington University in St. Louis, Department of Special Collections, Olin Library, St. Louis, MO 63130. (WTU00110).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
poet
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 novelist. Jack Foley
Jack Foley (poet)
Jack Foley is an American poet living in Oakland, California.-Biography:Jack Foley is a widely-published San Francisco poet and critic. Born in Neptune, New Jersey , raised in Port Chester, New York, and educated at Cornell University, Foley moved to California in 1963 to attend U. C. Berkeley...
, in his Introduction to Sward's Collected Poems, 1957-2004 (Black Moss Press, 2004) calls him, "in truth, a citizen, at heart, of both countries. At once a Canadian and American poet, one with a foot in both worlds, Sward also inhabits an enormous in-between." Or, as Rainer Maria Rilke puts it, "Every artist is born in an alien country; he has a homeland nowhere but within his own borders."
Early Years
Born in 1933 and raised in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, Sward began writing poetry at the age of 15 when he became involved with a street gang and used rhyming couplets in his notes to the other gang members. He graduated from Von Steuben high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
at 17 and quit his job as a soda jerk
Soda jerk
A soda jerk was a person — typically a youth — who operated the soda fountain in a drugstore, often for the purpose of preparing and serving ice cream soda. This was made by putting flavored syrup into a specially designed tall glass, adding carbonated water and, finally, one or two scoops of ice...
in a pharmacy to join the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
. In 1952 he was stationed in Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
on an amphibious ship, LST 914. A Yeoman
Yeoman
Yeoman refers chiefly to a free man owning his own farm, especially from the Elizabethan era to the 17th century. Work requiring a great deal of effort or labor, such as would be done by a yeoman farmer, came to be described as "yeoman's work"...
3rd Class, Sward soon became the head of the ship's library, while serving in the combat zone during the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
.
University
He has taught at Cornell UniversityCornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
, 1964-65, where he first experimented with computer-generated poetry and served on the editorial board of Epoch
Epoch (magazine)
Epoch is a three-times-a-year American literary magazine founded in 1947 and published by Cornell University. The widely respected magazine has published well-known authors and award-winning work including stories reprinted in The Best American Short Stories series and poems later included in The...
. He went on to teach 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...
, the University of Victoria
University of Victoria
The University of Victoria, often referred to as UVic, is the second oldest public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It is a research intensive university located in Saanich and Oak Bay, about northeast of downtown Victoria. The University's annual enrollment is about 20,000 students...
, and the University of California, Santa Cruz
University of California, Santa Cruz
The University of California, Santa Cruz, also known as UC Santa Cruz or UCSC, is a public, collegiate university; one of ten campuses in the University of California...
. In 1968, he signed the “Writers and Editors War Tax Protest” pledge, vowing to refuse tax payments in protest against the Vietnam War.
Working in Media
In the 1980s he worked for the CBCCanadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
, where he interviewed and produced 60-minute radio features on Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...
, Margaret Atwood
Margaret Atwood
Margaret Eleanor Atwood, is a Canadian poet, novelist, literary critic, essayist, and environmental activist. She is among the most-honoured authors of fiction in recent history; she is a winner of the Arthur C...
, Earle Birney
Earle Birney
Earle Alfred Birney, OC, FRSC was a distinguished Canadian poet and novelist, who twice won the Governor General's Award, Canada's top literary honor, for his poetry.-Life:...
, John Robert Colombo
John Robert Colombo
John Robert Colombo, CM is nationally known as the Master Gatherer. He is among Canada's most prolific authors of serious books...
and other leading Canadian figures. His Quill & Quire
Quill & Quire
Quill & Quire, a Canadian magazine about the book and publishing industry, was launched in 1935 and has an average circulation of 5,000 copies per issue, but its publisher claims a readership of 25,000...
interview with Saul Bellow
Saul Bellow
Saul Bellow was a Canadian-born Jewish American writer. For his literary contributions, Bellow was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, the Nobel Prize for Literature, and the National Medal of Arts...
was widely read. Sward also worked as journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
, book reviewer and feature writer for The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail is a nationally distributed Canadian newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities across the country. With a weekly readership of approximately 1 million, it is Canada's largest-circulation national newspaper and second-largest daily newspaper after the Toronto Star...
, and The Financial Times in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
while living on the Toronto Islands
Toronto Islands
The Toronto Islands are a chain of small islands in the city of Toronto, Ontario. Comprising the only group of islands in the western part of Lake Ontario, the Toronto Islands are located just offshore from the city centre, and provide shelter for Toronto Harbour...
. He received a Canada Council
Canada Council
The Canada Council for the Arts, commonly called the Canada Council, is a Crown Corporation established in 1957 to act as an arts council of the government of Canada, created to foster and promote the study and enjoyment of, and the production of works in, the arts. It funds Canadian artists and...
grant to research and write The Toronto Islands (1983), a best-selling (Source: Dreadnaught Press publisher, 1983) illustrated history of a unique community, from prehistoric times to the present.
Awards
A Fulbright Scholar and Guggenheim Fellow, he was chosen by Lucille Clifton to receive a $500 Villa Montalvo Literary Arts Award and is the author of 30 books of poetry, fiction and nonfiction. He has been published widely in numerous anthologies and traditional literary magazines, such as The New YorkerThe New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
, Poetry Chicago, and The Hudson Review
The Hudson Review
The Hudson Review is a quarterly journal of literature and the arts. It was founded in 1947 in New York by William Ayers Arrowsmith, Joseph Deericks Bennett, and George Frederick Morgan. The first issue was introduced in the spring of 1948...
. Sward later worked as technical writer and editor for Santa Cruz Operation (SCO), and served as “bridge person” between traditional hard copy academic periodicals and literary eZines.
Internet Publishing
He began publishing on the Internet in the late 1980s and early 90s with appearances in Alsop Review, Blue Moon Review, Web de Sol, X-Connect, eSCENE, Fiction Online, Hawk, Realpoetik, and Zero City. His essay, "Why I Publish in e-Zines", appeared online in 1995 and has been widely reprinted. Sward's "Earthquake Collage," impressions, news items, poetry, and facts regarding the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake and its aftermath, appeared in "Pathways to the Past, Adventures in Santa Cruz County History, History Journal Number 6," Museum of Art and History, Santa Cruz, CA, April, 2009.Books
Sward's first book, Uncle Dog & Other Poems (1962), was published by Putnam & Co. in EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It was followed by Kissing the Dancer (Cornell University Press, 1964), with an Introduction by Pulitzer Prize poet William Meredith
William Morris Meredith, Jr.
William Morris Meredith, Jr. was an American poet and educator. He was Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 1978 to 1980.-Early years:...
. The Carleton Miscellany reviewed the book saying, "In the animal poems there is a bravery in the face of our limitations, a warmth for our absurdities, a way of life to be gleaned from our failings and ineptitudes... a self-critique that turns our freakishness into an ironic source of fulfillment and transcendence." Source: Theodore Holmes in "The Carleton Miscellany" 1964. The poem, "Uncle Dog: The Poet At 9", has been frequently anthologized and Sward continues to write about exotic animals and dogs in particular. Animated videos of these works (mini-movies with poetry) employ avatars, digital representations of the poet and his subjects, and appear in DVD format and online at Blue's Cruzio Cafe.
A key theme in his most recent books, Rosicrucian in the Basement (2001), Heavenly Sex (2002), The Collected Poems, 1957-2004 (2004), and God is in the Cracks (2006), is fathers and sons. Sward's father, Dr. Irving M. Sward, was a podiatrist and something of a mystic, combining his practice of Rosicrucianism with a study of the Kabbalah. Of Rosicrucian in the Basement, Robert Bly
Robert Bly
Robert Bly is an American poet, author, activist and leader of the Mythopoetic Men's Movement.-Life:Bly was born in Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota, to Jacob and Alice Bly, who were of Norwegian ancestry. Following graduation from high school in 1944, he enlisted in the United States Navy, serving...
writes, 'There are many mysteries between father and son that people don't talk about... There's much leaping [in Sward's poetry], but each line, so to speak, steps on something solid.' In commenting on the father and son series Dana Gioia
Dana Gioia
-Poetry:It was as a poet that Gioia first began to attract widespread attention in the early 1980s, with frequent appearances in The Hudson Review, Poetry, and The New Yorker. In the same period, he published a number of essays and book reviews...
adds, "The CD is terrific... Rosicrucian in the Basement unfolds perfectly at its own pace and never loses the listener." Source: Robert Sward: Poetry, Review & Interview with Jack Foley," Recorded for KPFA-FM Berkeley, CA with readings from "Heavenly Sex" & "Rosicrucian in the Basement (2002), Uncle Dog Audio, Number 1002 (2002), and The Collected Poems, 1957-2004 (2004).
Garrison Keillor
Garrison Keillor
Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor is an American author, storyteller, humorist, and radio personality. He is known as host of the Minnesota Public Radio show A Prairie Home Companion Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (born August 7, 1942) is an American author, storyteller, humorist, and radio...
selected God is in the Cracks, one of the father and son poems and title piece of Sward's 2006 collection, for broadcast on his radio show "Writers Almanac."
http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php?date=2003/03/22
http://jjwebb.ihwy.com/rosycrossfather/godisinthecracks_keillor.mp3
Family
Sward and his life-partner, visual artist Gloria K. Alford, live in Santa CruzSanta Cruz, California
Santa Cruz is the county seat and largest city of Santa Cruz County, California in the US. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, Santa Cruz had a total population of 59,946...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, where he took up residence in 1985, after fourteen years living and working in Canada, primarily in Victoria, B.C. (1969-1979) and on the Toronto Islands (1979-1985). A member of the League of Canadian Poets since 1975, Sward has toured Canada with each of his new books, reviewed and helped bring noted Canadian writers to the U.S.
Sward's five children include Cheryl Cox Macpherson, a Professor of Bioethics; Kamala Joy, an environmental scientist; Michael Sward, a contractor and builder; Hannah Sward, administrative staff, Southwestern Law School; and Nicholas Sward, Hyatt Hotel chef in Toronto.
His literary correspondence and papers are housed at University Libraries, Washington University in St. Louis, Department of Special Collections, Olin Library, St. Louis, MO 63130. (WTU00110).
Selected bibliography
- Advertisements - 1958
- Uncle Dog and Other Poems - 1962
- Kissing the Dancer and Other Poems - 1964 (Introduction by William MeredithWilliam Morris Meredith, Jr.William Morris Meredith, Jr. was an American poet and educator. He was Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 1978 to 1980.-Early years:...
) - Thousand-Year-Old Fiancée and Other Poems - 1965
- Horgbortom Stringbottom I Am Yours You are History - 1970
- Hannah's Cartoon - 1970
- Quorum/Noah - 1970 (with Mike Doyle)
- Gift - 1971
- Innocence - 1950 - 1971
- Vancouver Island Poems - 1973 (editor / anthology)
- The Jurassic Shales - 1975
- Five Iowa Poems - 1975
- Honey Bear on Lasqueti Island, B.C. - 1978
- 12 Poems - 1982
- The Toronto Islands - 1983
- Half a Life's History - 1983
- Movies: Left to Right - 1983
- The Three Roberts - 1984 (with Robert PriestRobert PriestRobert Priest is a British born Canadian poet and children's author. He has written numerous books of poetry, several children's novels, and has often appeared on CBC radio's hit spoken word show "Wordbeat" under the alias "Dr Poetry". He is well known for his aphorisms and performance poetry...
and Robert Zend) - "Poet Santa Cruz" - 1985
- Four Incarnations: New and Selected Poems, 1957-1991 - 1991
- A Much-Married Man - 1996
- Rosicrucian in the Basement - 2001 (Introduction by William Minor)
- Heavenly Sex: New & Selected Poems - 2003
- The Collected Poems of Robert Sward 1957-2004 - 2004, 2006 now in its second printing (Introduction by Jack FoleyJack Foley (poet)Jack Foley is an American poet living in Oakland, California.-Biography:Jack Foley is a widely-published San Francisco poet and critic. Born in Neptune, New Jersey , raised in Port Chester, New York, and educated at Cornell University, Foley moved to California in 1963 to attend U. C. Berkeley...
) - God is in the Cracks, A Narrative in Voices - 2006
- New & Selected Poems, 1957-2011 (scheduled for publication by Red Hen Press) - 2011
Sources
- Contemporary Authors (CAAS), Gale/Thomson, Volume 206, 2003.
- Robert Sward. God is in the Cracks, A Narrative in Voices. Windsor, Ontario: Black Moss, 2006.
- Robert Sward. The Collected Poems of Robert Sward 1957-2004. Windsor, Ontario: Black Moss, 2004.
- Robert Sward. Four Incarnations: New and Selected Poems, 1957-1991. Minneapolis: Coffee House, 1991.
- University Libraries, Washington University in St. Louis, Department of Special Collections, Olin Library, St. Louis, MO 63130. Robert Sward Papers, 1957-- (WTU00110).
- Poetry FlashPoetry FlashPoetry Flash is a literary magazine and website based in the San Francisco Bay Area; it has been called "an institution in the Bay Area's literary culture". It publishes literary reviews, poetry, interviews, and essays as well as an extensive calendar of literary activities on the west coast of...
, No. 298, pp. 1, 8-10, 12-13, Fall 2006, "Life Is Its Own Afterlife: A Conversation With Robert Sward." - http://www.robertsward.com
- http://drswardscureformelancholia.blogspot.com/2007/11/dr-swards-cure-for-melancholia.html
- "The Muse DVD Magazine," Boss Productions, wboss@sbcglobal.net, 2007.
- Robert Sward: Poetry, Review & Interview with Jack Foley," Recorded for KPFA-FM Berkeley, CA with readings from "Heavenly Sex" & "Rosicrucian in the Basement (2002) Uncle Dog Audio, Number 1002.
- "Earthquake Collage," "Pathways to the Past, Adventures in Santa Cruz County History, History Journal Number 6," Museum of Art and History, Santa Cruz, CA, April, 2009.
- http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:R.Sward-hat.jpg
- http://www.redroom.com/author/robert-sward
- http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php?date=2003/04/05
- http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php?date=2003/03/22
- http://jjwebb.ihwy.com/rosycrossfather/godisinthecracks_keillor.mp3
External links
- The Robert Sward Papers at Washington University in St. Louis
- Blue's Cruzio Cafe
- Robert Sward fonds at University of Victoria, Special Collections
- http://www.damer.com/pictures/digicamera/pix2006/06-LocalEvents/06-09-26-RobertSward/index.html Author photos.
- http://www.redroom.com/author/robert-sward Additional website and writer's blog, redroom.com