Occupational poetry is a category of verbal art anchored in communities of work. As a form of folk poetry, it often manifests in the everyday settings of jobs and employment. Folklore scholarship and fieldwork has focused on the poetic traditions within a narrow range of occupational roles, including miners, commercial fishers, loggers, and, perhaps most visibly, cowboys.
The following cross-post was written by Alison Hall, a writer-editor for the Office of Public Information and Education in the U.S. Copyright Office; it originally appeared on the Copyright: Creativity at Work blog. Learn more about the connection between Edgar Allan Poe and copyright at the Copyright Matters event “Quoth the Raven: Edgar Allan Poe …
The following essay was written in 2012 by Ted Kooser, 13th Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry, as part of the Poetry and Literature Center’s online “Poetry of American History” series that ran from 2012-2014. The series included essays and interviews by leaders in the literary field, including former Poet Laureate Consultants in Poetry, that illustrated how …
The following is a guest post by National Youth Poet Laureate Kara Jackson. This is the third in a series of bimonthly blog posts that Kara will be writing during her laureateship this year. Happy Libra season everyone! October is my favorite month. I love the way fall forces us to live with change. It’s remarkable …
The following guest post, explaining the connection between former U.S. Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith and the latest Brad Pitt film, “Ad Astra,” is by Guy Lamolinara, communications officer for the Center for the Book. It originally appeared on the Library of Congress blog. If you have seen the space film “Ad Astra”—Latin for “to the …
The following guest post, part of our “Teacher’s Corner” series, is by Rebecca Newland, a Fairfax County Public Schools Librarian and former Teacher in Residence at the Library of Congress. This summer I participated in a week-long National Endowment for the Humanities Landmarks of American History and Culture workshop titled “The Concord Landscapes and Legacy …
The following is a guest post by Catalina Gomez, curator for the Archive of Hispanic Literature on Tape, Hispanic Division. The post originally appeared on the 4 Corners of the World: International Collections blog. Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15th – October 15th) is a wonderful moment to showcase the many fascinating collections and archives within the …
It’s been a busy summer and fall for U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo. In just the few months since her historic appointment announcement, Joy has been featured in virtually every major news outlet, as well as in outlets with ties to her local and regional communities; released her newest poetry collection, An American Sunrise; has …
It’s been nearly two weeks since Poet Laureate Joy Harjo’s inaugural reading, and we’re still reeling from the event. If you missed it, you can tune in to watch the evening’s festivities via the Library’s YouTube site (with captions). Last week, we sat down with Shari Werb, director of the Library’s new Center for Learning, …
