Judson Scruton will lead a four-part Winter Poetry Seminar Series exploring the poetry of Emily Dickinson on February 2, 9, 16, and 23.
As poet and critic Dan Chiasson recently pointed out in an important New Yorker article: 'This is an extraordinary time to read Dickinson, one of the richest moments since her death.' Among the reasons for this excitement are the publication of Dickinson’s 'Envelope Poems' both in print and in online digital format as well as a new edition of her poems from Harvard University Press — Emily Dickinson’s Poems: As She Preserved Them — including the 'alternate words and phrases Dickinson wrote on copies of the poems she retained.' These new literary resources are coming at the same time as significant restorations of the Emily Dickinson properties in Amherst are being undertaken.
The discussion will focus on some familiar and some lesser known Dickinson poems with the aid of these new resources to see Dickinson’s poems as, in Chiasson words, a 'unique category of verbal notation, significant both for their literary power and for their physical appearance on the page.'
Judson Scruton, M.A (The Johns Hopkins University, The Writing Seminars, specializing in poetry), has taught creative writing and literature at prep schools and universities. In his career as an educator, Judson has also directed publications, communications, public relations and development at a variety of educational institutions in the U.S. and UK, including the Newberry Library in Chicago. He is currently an Adjunct Professor of English at Fairfield University.
Wilton Library is located at 137 Old Ridgefield Road in Wilton, Conn. For more information, 762-6334, or visit wiltonlibrary.org.