Thom Gunn (29 August 1929 – 25 April 2004 / England)
an Anglo-American poet who was praised both for his early verses in England, where he was associated with The Movement and his later poetry in America, even after moving toward a looser, free-verse style. After relocating from England to San Francisco, Gunn, who became openly gay, wrote about gay-related topics — particularly in his most famous work, The Man With Night Sweats in 1992 — as well as drug use, sex, and topics related to his bohemian lifestyle. He won numerous major literary awards. more »
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Popular Poems
- A Map of the City
- Black Jackets
- Cat island
- Considering the Snail
- From the Wave
- My Sad Captains
- On The Move 'Man, You Gotta Go.'
- Painting by Vuillard
- Still Life
- Street Song
- The Butcher's Son
- The Dump
- The Hug
- The Man with Night Sweats
Quotations
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''the slow passion
Thom Gunn (b. 1929), Anglo-American poet. Considering the Snail (l. 17-18). . . Collected Poems [Thom Gunn]. (1994) Faber and Faber.
to that deliberate progress.'' -
''He
Thom Gunn (b. 1929), Anglo-American poet. Considering the Snail (l. 5-10). . . Collected Poems [Thom Gunn]. (1994) Faber and Faber.
moves in a wood of desire,
pale antlers barely stirring
as he hunts. I cannot tell
what power is at work, drenched there
with purpose, knowing nothing.'' -
''Distorting hackneyed words in hackneyed songs
Thom Gunn (b. 1929), British poet. Elvis Presley, The Sense of Movement (1957). The poem gave George Melly the title for his study of the pop arts...
He turns revolt into a style, prolongs
The impulse to a habit of the time.'' -
''O wily painter, limiting the scene
Thom Gunn (b. 1929), Anglo-American poet. In Santa Maria del Popolo (l. 13-15). . . Collected Poems [Thom Gunn]. (1994) Faber and Faber.
From a cacophony of dusty forms
To the one convulsion,''
Comments about Thom Gunn
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