Poetry
For the First Time in More Than 20 Years, Copyrighted Works Will Enter the Public Domain
A beloved Robert Frost poem is among the many creations that are (finally) losing their protections in 2019
Scholar Unearths Trove of Anne Sexton’s Forgotten Early Works
The four poems and an essay find the confessional poet detailing American life in the 1950s, from skiing to suburban lawn care
Smithsonian.com's Chief Digital Officer Shares His Favorite Books of the Year
Our own William Allman describes the 2018 titles he found to be the most enjoyable and eye-opening reads
Critically Explore 17th-Century Noblewoman's Little-Known Poems Online
Hester Pulter’s works detail chaotic political landscape of the English Civil War, scientific discoveries, theological queries, personal struggles
Tracy K. Smith, America's Poet Laureate, Travels the Country to Ignite Our Imaginations
Like Johnny Appleseed, Smith has been planting the seeds of verse across the U.S.
Cats in Literature? It’s a Long Tail
A new exhibition at the British Library explores how cats have inspired—and frightened—writers across the centuries
How Poetry Soothed a Nation in Mourning for John F. Kennedy
First the jolt of shock, then a shroud of sadness struck the nation in the weeks following that fateful day
How the Poppy Came to Symbolize World War I
The red flowers blooming on a battlefield in Belgium, inspired John McCrae to write the war poem “In Flanders Fields”
Is This the Bag That Held Sir Walter Raleigh's Mummified Head?
Legend has it his wife retained his embalmed head. But while the sack dates to the correct era and was found in his son's home, scholars are not convinced
The Translator Who Brought a Lost Jewish Poet’s Words to the English-Speaking World
Raised in the U.S. but a lifelong speaker of Lithuanian, Laima Vince became enamored of Matilda Olkin’s writing
Mary Borden's Forgotten World War I Ballad to Mark Centenary of Armistice Day
The heiress, poet and activist funded and oversaw military field hospitals during both world wars, penned series of sonnets inspired by wartime experiences
Hundreds of Newly Found Poems Reveal the Devastation of the U.K.’s ‘Cotton Famine’
When the American Civil War crippled England’s cotton industry, impoverished workers turned to poetry to convey their plight
Researcher Finds Earlier Birth Date for Langston Hughes
It has long been believed that the famed poet was born in 1902, but his name appears in newspaper articles from 1901
Analysis Breaks Down the Annoying "Poet Voice"
It's not just you; poets also read their works aloud with long pauses, weird cadences and almost no emotion
How Poetry and Math Intersect
Both require economy and precision—and each perspective can enhance the other
Poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge's Casket Rediscovered in Former Wine Cellar
Parishioners at St. Michael's Church in Highgate hope to refurbish the crypt after identifying where exactly Coleridge's final resting place was
In His Speeches, MLK Carefully Evoked the Poetry of Langston Hughes
To avoid being labeled a communist sympathizer, King had to distance himself from Hughes, but he still managed to channel the controversial poet
A Never-Ending Poem Grows in the Netherlands
De Letters van Utrecht is carved into the city streets and will continue indefinitely
It Didn’t Take Very Long For Anesthesia to Change Childbirth
The unprecedented idea of a painless delivery changed women's lives
The Most Notorious Poet in 18th Century America Was An Enslaved Teenager You've Never Heard Of
Phyllis Wheatley was a prodigy, but her ultimate fate reflects the gross racial disparities of 1700s America
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