Michael Jackson (poet)
Encyclopedia
Michael Jackson is a poet, anthropologist, and academic.
, Auckland University, and Cambridge University. He lectured at Massey University
, the Australian National University
, and Indiana University
.
through the 1970s and in 1985, with the Warlpiri
of Australia’s Northern Territory
between 1989 and 1991, and with the Kuku Yalangi of Cape York Peninsula
in 1993 and 1994.
His work has appeared in Poetry NZ. In 2006, one critic wrote: "Michael Jackson’s latest collection of poetry is titled Dead Reckoning, a navigator’s term for estimating one’s location based upon extrapolations of distance and direction from one’s last-known position. The eponymous poem cements the metaphor’s connection to personal identity..."
Education
Jackson studied at Victoria University of WellingtonVictoria University of Wellington
Victoria University of Wellington was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a former constituent college of the University of New Zealand. It is particularly well known for its programmes in law, the humanities, and some scientific disciplines, but offers a broad range of other courses...
, Auckland University, and Cambridge University. He lectured at Massey University
Massey University
Massey University is one of New Zealand's largest universities with approximately 36,000 students, 20,000 of whom are extramural students.The University has campuses in Palmerston North , Wellington and Auckland . Massey offers most of its degrees extramurally within New Zealand and internationally...
, the Australian National University
Australian National University
The Australian National University is a teaching and research university located in the Australian capital, Canberra.As of 2009, the ANU employs 3,945 administrative staff who teach approximately 10,000 undergraduates, and 7,500 postgraduate students...
, and Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
.
Career
He has conducted fieldwork, which includes living with the Kuranko people in Sierra LeoneSierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
through the 1970s and in 1985, with the Warlpiri
Warlpiri
The Warlpiri are a group of Indigenous Australians, many of whom speak the Warlpiri language. There are 5,000–6,000 Warlpiri, living mostly in a few towns and settlements scattered through their traditional land in Australia's Northern Territory, north and west of Alice Springs...
of Australia’s Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
between 1989 and 1991, and with the Kuku Yalangi of Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula is a large remote peninsula located in Far North Queensland at the tip of the state of Queensland, Australia, the largest unspoilt wilderness in northern Australia and one of the last remaining wilderness areas on Earth...
in 1993 and 1994.
His work has appeared in Poetry NZ. In 2006, one critic wrote: "Michael Jackson’s latest collection of poetry is titled Dead Reckoning, a navigator’s term for estimating one’s location based upon extrapolations of distance and direction from one’s last-known position. The eponymous poem cements the metaphor’s connection to personal identity..."
Anthropological books
- Allegories of the Wilderness: Ethics and Ambiguity in Kuranko Narratives (1982)
- Barawa, and The Ways Birds Fly in the Sky (1986)
- Paths Toward a Clearing: Radical Empiricism and Ethnographic Inquiry (1989)
- At Home in the World (1995)
Poetry
- Latitudes of Exile (1976)
- Wall (1980)
- Going On (1985)
- Duty Free: Selected Poems 1965–1988 (1989)
- Antipodes (1996)
- Dead Reckoning
Awards
- 1981 New Zealand Book Award for Poetry
- 1983 Katherine Mansfield Memorial Fellowship
- 1995 Montana New Zealand Book Award for PoetryMontana New Zealand Book Award for PoetryThe Montana New Zealand Book Award for Poetry is one category of the New Zealand Post Book Awards, given out annually. The award carries a $5,000 prize for each winner of the category awards, including the award for poetry....