Alan Dugan (February 12, 1923 – September 3, 2003) was an American
poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...
.
His first volume ''Poems'' published in 1961 was a chosen by the
Yale Series of Younger Poets and went on to win the
National Book Award for Poetry[ and the ]Pulitzer Prize for Poetry
The Pulitzer Prize for Poetry is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes awarded annually for Letters, Drama, and Music. The award came five years after the first Pulitzers were awarded in other categories; Joseph Pulitzer's will had not ment ...
.
His last volume, entitled ''Poems Seven: New and Complete Poetry'', was published in 2001 by Seven Stories Press in New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
and won Dugan a second National Book Award.[
]
Life
Dugan grew up in Jamaica, Queens
Jamaica is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It has a popular large commercial and retail area, though part of the neighborhood is also residential. Jamaica is bordered by Hollis, St Albans, and Cambria Heights to the ea ...
, and served in World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, experiences which entered his poetry, though he was not a confessional poet.
He lived in Truro, Massachusetts
Truro is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States, comprising two villages: Truro and North Truro. Located slightly more than 100 miles (160 km) by road from Boston, it is a summer vacation community just south of the n ...
on Cape Cod
Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...
, where he was a member of the Writing Committee of the Fine Arts Work Center.
Dugan's work was published in successive numbered collections under the simple title ''Poems''.
Alan Dugan was married to the artist Judith Shahn, to whom he dedicated each of his books. He died on September 3, 2003, of pneumonia at age 80.Alan Dugan, 80, Barbed Poet Of Daily Life's Profundities
‘’New York Times’’ Obituary
Awards
Dugan received many awards and fellowships for his poetry.
*''Poems'' (1961
Events January
* January 1 – Monetary reform in the Soviet Union, 1961, Monetary reform in the Soviet Union.
* January 3
** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and cons ...
): Yale Series of Younger Poets, National Book Award for Poetry,["National Book Awards – 1962"]
National Book Foundation
The National Book Foundation (NBF) is an American nonprofit organization established with the goal "to raise the cultural appreciation of great writing in America." Established in 1989 by National Book Awards, Inc.,Edwin McDowell. "Book Notes: ...
. Retrieved 2012-03-02.
(With acceptance speech by Dugan and essay by Katie Peterson from the Awards 60-year anniversary blog.) Pulitzer Prize for Poetry
The Pulitzer Prize for Poetry is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes awarded annually for Letters, Drama, and Music. The award came five years after the first Pulitzers were awarded in other categories; Joseph Pulitzer's will had not ment ...
.
*''Poems Seven: New and Complete Poetry'' (2001
The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...
): National Book Award
The National Book Awards (NBA) are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors. ...
.["National Book Awards – 2001"]
National Book Foundation
The National Book Foundation (NBF) is an American nonprofit organization established with the goal "to raise the cultural appreciation of great writing in America." Established in 1989 by National Book Awards, Inc.,Edwin McDowell. "Book Notes: ...
. Retrieved 2012-03-03.
*Awarded the Prix De Rome by the National Institute of Arts and Letters
The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, music, and art. Its fixed number membership is elected for lifetime appointments. Its headqua ...
(1962)
*The Shelley Memorial Award: Poetry Society of America
Poetry (from the Greek word '' poiesis'', "making") is a form of literary art that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meanings in addition to, or in place of, literal or surface-level meanings. Any partic ...
(1982)
*The Award in Literature: American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters
The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, music, and art. Its fixed number membership is elected for lifetime appointments. Its headqua ...
(1985)
*Awarded the Lannan Literary Award for Poetry in 2002
The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...
.
Works
* ''Poems'' (1961)
* ''Poems 2'' (1963)
* ''Poems 3'' (1967)
* ''Poems 4'' (1974)
* ''Poems Five: New and Collected Poems'' (1983)
* ''Poems Six'' (1989)
* ''Poems Seven: New and Complete Poetry'' (2001)
See also
*American poetry
American poetry refers to the poetry of the United States. It arose first as efforts by American colonists to add their voices to English poetry in the 17th century, well before the Constitution of the United States, constitutional unification ...
* List of poets from the United States
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dugan, Alan
1923 births
2003 deaths
United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II
American male poets
National Book Award winners
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry winners
Writers from Queens, New York
Yale Younger Poets winners
20th-century American poets
20th-century American male writers