Peter Makuck (October 26, 1940 – June 21, 2023) was an American poet, short story writer, and critic. He was a distinguished professor emeritus of English at

East Carolina University East Carolina University (ECU) is a public university in Greenville, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of universities in North Carolina by enrollment, fourth largest university in North Carolina and the only one in the state with s ...

, where he was also the first distinguished professor of arts and sciences; he also served as visiting writer in residence at

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

, visiting distinguished professor at

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State, North Carolina State, NC State University, or NCSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1887 and p ...

, and visiting distinguished writer-in-residence at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington. In 1993, Makuck received the Charity Randall Citation from the International Poetry Forum. Poems, stories, and reviews by Makuck have been published in many leading journals, including ''

Poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

'', ''

The Southern Review ''The Southern Review'' is a quarterly literary magazine that was established by Robert Penn Warren in 1935 at the behest of Charles W. Pipkin and funded by Huey Long as a part of his investment in Louisiana State University. It publishes ficti ...

'', ''The Hudson Review'', ''

Ploughshares ''Ploughshares'' is an American literary journal established in 1971 by DeWitt Henry and Peter O'Malley in The Plough and Stars, an Irish pub in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Since 1989, ''Ploughshares'' has been based at Emerson College in Bost ...

,'' and others, and his work has been featured on the Poetry Daily website and on

Garrison Keillor Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (; born August 7, 1942) is an American author, singer, humorist, voice actor, and radio personality. He created the Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) show ''A Prairie Home Companion'' (called ''Garrison Keillor's Radio ...

's Writer's Almanac. Makuck was the founding editor of the journal '' Tar River Poetry''. He lived with his wife, Phyllis, on

Bogue Banks Bogue Banks form a barrier island off the mainland of North Carolina in Carteret County. The island, separated from the mainland by Bogue Sound, runs east to west, with the ocean beaches facing due south. Bogue Banks is the only island on the ...

, one of North Carolina's barrier islands. He died in 2023 after a long illness.

Education

Makuck received his B.A. from St. Francis College (now part of the University of New England) in

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

, his M.A. from

Niagara University Niagara University (NU) is a private Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition in the census-designated place Niagara University, New York, in the town of Lewiston near Niagara Falls. It is run by the Congregation of the Mission and ...

, and his Ph.D. from

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a Public university, public research university in Kent, Ohio, United States. The university includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio located in Kent State University at Ashtabula, Ashtabula, Kent State ...

, where he wrote his dissertation on

William Faulkner William Cuthbert Faulkner (; September 25, 1897 – July 6, 1962) was an American writer. He is best known for William Faulkner bibliography, his novels and short stories set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, a stand-in fo ...

. As a student he witnessed the 1970

Kent State shootings The Kent State shootings (also known as the Kent State massacre or May 4 massacre"These would be the first of many probes into what soon became known as the Kent State Massacre. Like the Boston Massacre almost exactly two hundred years before (Ma ...

; his early poem "The Commons" addresses this event.

Themes

According to Lorraine Hale Robinson, Makuck's poems "repeatedly explore the themes of epiphany and second chances; of the relations of mystery, grace, and beauty; and of the revalatory effects of jolts of violence." He has a "compelling interest in place.... e landscapes of Eastern North Carolina have influenced his work," as has the desert Southwest (214-215). Matthew Schmeer, in his review of Makuck's ''Off-season in the Promised Land'', notes that

Acceptance is as an undercurrent in these poems: acceptance of time, of fate, of the changing seasons, of loss, of the gifts and glimpses of the natural world. It would be easy to label Makuck a naturalist after reading this collection, as fully three-fourths of the pieces are about encounters with whales, hawks, fish, weather, shifting sandbars and whatnot. But . . . Makuck does not see nature as wholly benevolent. There is always an undercurrent of danger, of quiet violence, times when a quick squall can blow in from offshore, when the beauty of the landed fish is admired for a moment before the knife is unsheathed. Hawks and hurricanes cannot be held to moral standards, and Makuck revels in revealing this seam where violence and calm collide. . . .

Works

Poetry * ''Mandatory Evacuation''. Rochester, NY: BOA Editions, 2016. * ''Long Lens: New & Selected Poems''. Rochester, NY: BOA Editions, 2010. * ''Off-Season in the Promised Land.'' Rochester, NY: BOA Editions, 2005. * ''Against Distance.'' Rochester, NY: BOA Editions, 1997. * ''Shorelines.'' Maryville, MO: Green Tower P, 1995. * ''The Sunken Lightship.'' Rochester, NY: BOA Editions, 1990. * ''Pilgrims.'' Bristol, RI: Ampersand P, 1987. * ''Where We Live.'' Rochester, NY: BOA Editions, 1982. Short Story Collections * ''Wins & Losses.'' Syracuse, NY: Syracuse UP, 2016. * ''Allegiance and Betrayal.'' Syracuse, NY: Syracuse UP, 2013. * ''Costly Habits.'' Columbia, MO: U of Mo P, 2002. * ''Breaking and Entering.'' Champaign, IL: U of Illinois P, 1981. Criticism * ''An Open World: Essays on Leslie Norris.'' Co-edited with

Eugene England George Eugene England, Jr. (22 July 1933 – 17 August 2001), usually credited as Eugene England, was a Latter-day Saint writer, teacher, and scholar. He founded '' Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought'', the oldest independent journal in Mor ...

. Rochester, NY: Camden House, 1994.

References

* Ettari, Gary. "The Poet and the Sea: An Interview with Peter Makuck." ''North Carolina Literary Review'' Number 16 (2007): 66–74. * Robinson, Lorraine Hale. "Peter Makuck," in "Dictionary of North Carolina Writers: Lacy to Mathabane." ''North Carolina Literary Review'' Number 9 (2000): 214–215. * Schmeer, Matthew. Review of ''Off-season in the Promised Land.'
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Makuck, Peter East Carolina University faculty American male poets Poets from North Carolina Brigham Young University faculty North Carolina State University faculty Kent State University alumni Niagara University alumni University of New England (United States) alumni 1940 births 2023 deaths