Wednesday, May 13, 2015

Kathleen Jamie and the art of Listening

It’s the birthday of poet Kathleen Jamie (books by this author), born in Renfrewshire, Scotland (1962). She’s not particularly well known, but many critics consider her to be one of the best living poets in the U.K.; and the London Times has called her “the leading Scottish poet of her generation.”

She said: “When we were young, we were told that poetry is about voice, about finding a voice and speaking with this voice, but the older I get I think it’s not about voice, it’s about listening and the art of listening, listening with attention. I don’t just mean with the ear; bringing the quality of attention to the world. The writers I like best are those who attend.”

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