In today’s stories, we delve into the world of poetry and social media to take a look at the anonymous Instagram poet, look at what inspires the winner of the 2017 Kundiman Poetry Prize and we explore the unusual collaboration between athleticism and poetry. Atticus – The Instagram Poet The rise of social media has made it possible for poetry to reach more people ...
John Arbuthnot was an intellectually gifted man who was a satirist, physician and mathematician. He is often described as a true polymath and was responsible for the invention, in 1712, of a character named John Bull who would go on to symbolise “middle England” in political and sociological posters, pamphlets and publications. He was one of the founder members of a London literary ...
John Allan Wyeth was an American writer, artist and school teacher. His poignant pieces written about the First World War earned him the epithet “war poet” but it actually took until the year 2008 for this to happen. This was when his book This Man’s Army: A War in Fifty-Odd Sonnets, originally published 80 years before, was reprinted. It became one of the ...
Today we look at poetry as an alternative to medicine; can it really work? And look at the ways in which the world remembered Jane Austen on the bicentenary of her death. Poetry on Prescription Arts on Prescription, a scheme which is available in the UK via GP referral is nothing new, it has been around for quite a few years and has very ...
John Addington Symonds was a 19th century English poet, biographer, literary historian and critic. He also taught at a number of establishments in Bristol. His life took a curious course in that he married and had children but was also an enthusiastic advocate of homosexuality, espousing pederasty and egalitarianism in equal measures. Indeed, one of his poems (simply called Hymn) suggested a utopian ...
Today we bring you poetry news from three very different cultures; poetry and politics from Cuba, a Palestinian poet who is being brought out of the shadows and a rise in Indian language poetry. Poetry and Politics At My Poetic Side, we are interested to see that once again poetry and politics have become interwoven in the news. This time at Cuba’s First Itinerant ...
In today’s news round-up, Music and poetry meet in two very different ways and we see just how much of an influence social media is having on the popularity and accessibility of poetry. Persian Poet and Philosopher: Rumi Following the announcement that Beyonce and Jay-Z had chosen the name Rumi for one of their twins, the big question that many people were asking was ...
News has reached My Poetic Side of the passing of poet Liu Xiaobo. Born on 28th December 1955 in Changchun, Jilin, Liu Xiaobo was a Chinese writer, literary critic, and poet. He is possibly best known for his role as a human rights activist, the role that he played in calling for political reforms in China and his involvement in campaigns to ...
Johannes Carl Andersen was a Danish-born New Zealand poet and anthropologist who was an authority on Maori folklore and customs. He also held down an administrative job with the Department of Lands and Survey for almost three decades. He was born on the 14th March 1873 in a small Jutland village called Klakring, the son of a watchmaker. The family emigrated to New ...
Johan Ludvig Runeberg was a poet hailing from Finland who wrote in Swedish. He wrote the lyrics to a song called Our Land which was adopted as the national anthem of Finland and his fame and literary achievements led him to be considered the National Poet of Finland. He wrote many religious pieces for a Finnish Lutheran hymnal, this being the nationally recognised book ...
