Aaron Shurin
Encyclopedia
Aaron Shurin is an American poet, essayist, and educator. Since 1999, he has co-directed the Master of Fine Arts
in Writing Program at the University of San Francisco
.
in Poetics
from New College of California
, where he studied under poet Robert Duncan
. He is a recipient of California Arts Council Literary Fellowships in poetry (1989, 2002), and a NEA
fellowship in creative nonfiction (1995). Shurin is the former Associate Director of the Poetry Center & American Poetry Archives at San Francisco State University and the author of numerous books of poetry, including: Into Distances (1993), The Paradise of Forms: Selected Poems (1999), A Door (2000), Involuntary Lyrics (2005), Citizen (2012); and volumes of prose, including Unbound: A Book of AIDS
(1997) and King of Shadows (2008), a collection of essays.
Aaron Shurin has taught extensively in the fields of American poetry and poetics, contemporary and classical prosody, improvisational techniques in composition, and the personal essay. According to his biography at the University of San Francisco where he teaches, his own work is framed by the innovative traditions in lyric poetry as they extend the central purpose of the Romantic Imagination
: to attend the world in its particularities, body and soul.
, Emily Dickinson
and of those who followed. Writes Shurin:
Following upon Whitman and Dickinson, Shurin acknowledges a multiplicity of influences on his sense of a poetics:
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
in Writing Program at the University of San Francisco
University of San Francisco
The University of San Francisco , is a private, Jesuit/Catholic university located in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1855, USF was established as the first university in San Francisco. It is the second oldest institution for higher learning in California and the tenth-oldest university of...
.
Life and work
Aaron Shurin received his M.A.Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
in Poetics
Poetics
Aristotle's Poetics is the earliest-surviving work of dramatic theory and the first extant philosophical treatise to focus on literary theory...
from New College of California
New College of California
New College of California was founded in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1971 by former Gonzaga University President, Father John Leary. After 37 years, it ceased operations in early 2008....
, where he studied under poet Robert Duncan
Robert Duncan (poet)
Robert Duncan was an American poet and a student of H.D. and the Western esoteric tradition who spent most of his career in and around San Francisco. Though associated with any number of literary traditions and schools, Duncan is often identified with the poets of the New American Poetry and Black...
. He is a recipient of California Arts Council Literary Fellowships in poetry (1989, 2002), and a NEA
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...
fellowship in creative nonfiction (1995). Shurin is the former Associate Director of the Poetry Center & American Poetry Archives at San Francisco State University and the author of numerous books of poetry, including: Into Distances (1993), The Paradise of Forms: Selected Poems (1999), A Door (2000), Involuntary Lyrics (2005), Citizen (2012); and volumes of prose, including Unbound: A Book of AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
(1997) and King of Shadows (2008), a collection of essays.
Aaron Shurin has taught extensively in the fields of American poetry and poetics, contemporary and classical prosody, improvisational techniques in composition, and the personal essay. According to his biography at the University of San Francisco where he teaches, his own work is framed by the innovative traditions in lyric poetry as they extend the central purpose of the Romantic Imagination
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
: to attend the world in its particularities, body and soul.
Poetics
Shurin's poetics might be described as a poetics of the voice in the tradition of Walt WhitmanWalt Whitman
Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among the most influential poets in the American canon, often called the father of free verse...
, Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was an American poet. Born in Amherst, Massachusetts, to a successful family with strong community ties, she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life...
and of those who followed. Writes Shurin:
Following upon Whitman and Dickinson, Shurin acknowledges a multiplicity of influences on his sense of a poetics:
External links
- What is American About American Poetry? essay by Shurin at the Poetry Society of America website
- Three Scenes from the Sauna at the YMCA a prose poetry piece by Shurin (2002) at Lodestar Quarterly
- Narrativity This essay was first delivered by Shruin as a talk at Painted Bride, Philadelphia, June 1989.
- Unbound: A book of AIDS a selection from this book on-line
- review of The Paradise of Forms: Selected Poems Jeffrey Jullich on Aaron Shurin
- poems from Involuntary Lyrics at Electronic Poetry Review
- from a review of A's Dream by Steve Silberman at 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...
, January 1990. Link includes an excerpt from A's Dream - "The very first page is so strong it nearly took my head off..." Ron SillimanRon SillimanRon Silliman is an American poet. He has written and edited over 30 books, and has had his poetry and criticism translated into 12 languages. He is often associated with language poetry. Between 1979 and 2004, Silliman wrote a single poem, The Alphabet...
on Involuntary Lyrics – this page is a smörgåsbordSmörgåsbordSmörgåsbord is a type of Scandinavian meal served buffet-style with multiple dishes of various foods on a table, originating in Sweden. In Norway it is called koldtbord, in Denmark it is called det kolde bord, in Finland seisova pöytä and in Estonia rootsi laud...
of links to Shurin readings from his work, including an interview with Shurin by Stacey Lewis in mp3 format, along with capsule reviews and comments about Shurin's work