Robert Peters (writer) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Robert Peters
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Robert Peters in 2004
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| Born | Robert Louis Peters October 20, 1924 Eagle River, Wisconsin |
| Died | June 13, 2014 (aged 89) Irvine, California |
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| Nationality | American |
Robert Louis Peters (October 20, 1924 – June 13, 2014) was an American writer who did many things! He was a poet, a critic (someone who reviews books and art), a scholar (a smart person who studies a lot), a playwright (someone who writes plays), an editor, and even an actor. He earned a special degree called a PhD in Victorian literature, which is writing from the time of Queen Victoria in England.
Robert Peters grew up in a poor, rural area of northern Wisconsin. His journey as a poet began in 1967 after a very sad family event: his young son Richard passed away. He wrote a book of poems called Songs for a Son to remember his son. This book was chosen by another famous poet, Denise Levertov, and was published in 1967. After Songs for a Son, Robert Peters wrote many more poems.
Contents
Becoming a Scholar
After serving in the army during World War II, Robert Peters went to the University of Wisconsin. He studied English and earned three degrees there: a bachelor's degree in 1948, a master's degree in 1949, and his doctorate (PhD) in 1952.
He taught at several universities, including Wayne State University, Boston University, and the University of California, Irvine. He started teaching at UC Irvine in 1967. His main area of study was Victorian literature, which includes famous writers like Charles Dickens and the Brontë sisters.
He wrote many articles and books about Victorian literature. He even received a special scholarship called a Fulbright Fellowship to study in Cambridge, England, in the 1960s. In 1965, he published a scholarly book called The Crowns of Apollo about a poet named Algernon Charles Swinburne. After his poetry book Songs for a Son came out, he spent more time writing and studying modern poetry.
Poet and Critic
Robert Peters wrote about 30 books of poems, which means he was a very active poet! He was also an important critic of modern American poetry. He wrote several books where he reviewed and shared his thoughts on more than 400 poets and critics. These books included The Great American Poetry Bake-Off series. He also wrote poetry reviews for the Los Angeles Times newspaper.
One of his books, Where the Bee Sucks, had 35 essays about well-known poets like Robert Bly and Allen Ginsberg. It also featured comments on the work of poets who were not as famous.
Billy Collins, who later became a famous poet himself and was once Robert Peters's student, said that Peters's poetry was special. He said it mixed playful rhymes with serious topics, bringing new feelings to poetry.
Another poet, Robert Bly, praised Peters's criticism book, American Poetry Bakeoff. He said Peters's ideas were important and that young poets who were tired of hearing the same old poems should read his work. Bly especially liked Peters's essay about the poet Robert Creeley.
In 2001, Robert Peters published his 40th book, Familial Love and Other Misfortunes. He also helped edit several literary magazines like The American Book Review.
His Poetry Style
Robert Peters's poems covered many different topics and styles. Some of his poems were very personal, talking about happy family moments or sad times, like a family break-up or his childhood in rural Wisconsin. Other poems explored the minds of interesting historical figures, like a Bavarian king or a British painter.
His interest in writing from the viewpoint of other people (called "personae poetry") came from his studies of the Victorian poet Robert Browning. Robert Peters even turned some of his poems about King Ludwig II of Bavaria and Elizabeth Báthory (a Hungarian Countess) into plays. He performed these plays around the country. His book Poems: Selected & New collects many of his best poems from over 30 years.
Poetry Performances
Robert Peters started acting after giving many poetry readings. He wanted more people to experience his poetry, so he turned his "personae poems" into theatrical shows. These shows had memorized scripts, special lighting, settings, and sound.
He performed at various places, including Barnsdall Art Park in Los Angeles and many college campuses. He even took acting lessons from a professor at the University of California, Irvine. All his performances, including videos, photos, and reviews, are kept in a special library collection at the University of California San Diego.
Memoirs: Stories from His Life
Robert Peters wrote four memoirs, which are true stories about his own life. These books told about his childhood in the "North Woods" of Wisconsin during the 1930s. His last memoir was about a personal loss that happened in the 1950s.
Thomas Keneally, the author of Schindler's List, described Peters's second memoir, Nell's Story, as a "rich memoir" that was "playful" and "inventive."
Awards and Honors
Robert Peters was a judge for many poetry competitions and awards. He received several important fellowships, which are special grants that help writers and scholars. These included a Guggenheim Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, and a Fulbright Scholarship. He also won the Alice Fay di Castagnola Award from the Poetry Society of America.
His Legacy
Robert Peters's writings and papers from 1950 to 1990 are kept at the Kenneth Spencer Research Library at the University of Kansas. His collection of modern poetry books and related papers is at Bowling Green State University. His other archives are at the Geisel Library Special Collections at the University of California San Diego. These collections help future students and writers learn from his work.
Personal Life
Robert Peters shared his life with a partner, Paul Trachtenberg, for over 36 years. They lived in Huntington Beach, California.
Death
Robert Peters passed away on June 13, 2014, in Huntington Beach, California. He was 89 years old.
Works
Selected Books of Poetry
- Songs for a Son, W. W. Norton, 1967
- The Sow's Head and Other Poems, Wayne State University Press, 1968
- Connections: In the English Lake District, Anvil Press Chapbook Series, London 1972
- Red Midnight Moon, Empty Elevator Shaft Chapbook Series, 1973
- Holy Cow: Parable Poems, Red Hill Press, San Francisco, 1974
- Bronchial Tangle, Heart System, Granite Books, 1975
- Cool Zebras of Light, Christopher's Books, Santa Barbara, California, 1975
- The Gift to Be Simple: A Garland for Ann Lee, Liveright/ W.W. Norton, 1975
- The Poet as Ice Skater, Manroot Books, 1976
- Gauguin's Chair: Selected Poems 1967-1974, Crossing Press, 1977
- Hawthorne, Red Hill Press, San Francisco, 1977
- Ikagnak: The North Wind, Kenmore Press, 1978
- Celebrities: In Memory of Margaret Dumont, Sombre Reptiles, 1981
- The Picnic in the Snow: Ludwig of Bavaria, New Rivers Press, 1982
- What John Dillinger Meant to Me, Sea Horse Press, 1983
- Love Poems For Robert Mitchum, Chiron Review Press, 1983
- Hawker, Unicorn Press, 1984
- Kane, Unicorn Press, 1985
- Shaker Light, Unicorn Press, 1986
- Ludwig of Bavaria: Poems and a Play, Revised edition, Cherry Valley Edition, 1986
- The Blood Countess: Poems and a Play, Cherry Valley Edition, 1987
- Haydon, Unicorn Press, 1988
- Breughel's Pig, Illuminati Press, Los Angeles, 1990
- Good Night, Paul, GLB Publishers, 1992
- Robert Peters: Poems: Selected & New, 1967-1991, Asylum Arts, 1992
- Familial Love and Other Misfortunes, Red Hen Press, Los Angeles, 2002
- Makars' Dozens, Pearl Edition, Long Beach, California 2006
Memoirs
- Crunching Gravel: A Wisconsin Boyhood in the Thirties, University of Wisconsin Press, 1993
- Nell: A Woman From Wisconsin, University of Wisconsin Press, 1995
- For You, Lili Marlene" A Memoir of WW II, University of Wisconsin Press, 1995
- Feather: A Child's Life and Death, University of Wisconsin Press, 1997
Interviews
- With Billy Collins, in Gauguin's Chair: Selected Poems, Crossing Press, 1977
- With William Matthews, "The Shaker Poems", in The Great American Poetry Bake-off: Second Series, Ibid., 141-150.
- Featured in the Writer's Autobiography Series, Vol. VIII, Gale Research Company, December 1989
Essays on Robert Peters
- Diane Wakoski, in American Poetry, Winter 1985, 71-78
- Billy Collins, "Literary Reputation and the Thrown Voice", in A Gift of Tongues: Critical Challenges in Contemporary American Poetry, eds. Marie Harris and Kathleen Augero, University of Georgia Press, 1987, 295-306.
- Charles Hood, "Robert Peters", for the Dictionary of Literary Biography.
Images for kids
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Robert Peters in 2004
