Pessoa Plural (Oct 2016)
The enduring presence of Pessoa
Abstract
Continuing The presence of Pessoa (Monteiro, 1998), which offers accounts of how a number of significant English-language writers have reacted to the work of the Portuguese poet in major ways, this piece calls attention to "A Friend of Dr. Reis," a story by Robert Boyers; poems by Eirin Mouré (Sheep's Vigil by a Fervent Person), David Shapiro ("At the Grave of Ferdinand Pessoa or the Triple Tomb"), and April Bernard ("Lisbon: 1989"); Bob Holman's unique way of using Pessoa's poetry in teaching ("Notes toward exploding 'Exploding text: poetry performance'"); and James Dickey's initial enthusiasm over his discovery of Pessoa's creation and employment of various personae, but later sour grapes denigration of Pessoa's poetry.
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