“Robert Pinsky belongs to that rarest category of talents, a poet-critic.”—Robert Lowell
Two important books of criticism by the Pulitzer Prize finalist and former U.S. poet laureate—now combined in a single volume with a new preface by the author
For Robert Pinsky, poetry’s individual, human scale as a fundamentally vocal medium—with poems brought to life by one person at a time—gives poetry a unique importance in American and democratic culture and society. This book brings together two compelling works of criticism by the former poet laureate—The Situation of Poetry and Democracy, Culture and the Voice of Poetry, in which he makes a passionate and eloquent case for the vital role of poetry in a democracy.
Price: $24.95
Pages: 320
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Imprint: Princeton University Press
Publication Date:
26 May 2026
ISBN: 9780691278254
Format: Paperback
BISACs:
POETRY / American / General, Literary studies: poetry and poets, LITERARY COLLECTIONS / Essays, LITERARY CRITICISM / Poetry, Literary essays, Poetry
Robert Pinsky is an award-winning American poet, essayist, and translator. He has been a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for poetry and the National Book Critics Circle Award for criticism. He served for three terms as the U.S. Poet Laureate, during which time he founded the Favorite Poem Project. His many books include Robert Pinsky: The First Two Books of Poems (Princeton) and the memoir Jersey Breaks: Becoming an American Poet. His bestselling translation of Dante’s Inferno won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Among his other awards and honors are the William Carlos Williams Award, the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize, the PEN/Voelcker Award, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the PEN American Center, and the Harold Washington Award from the City of Chicago. He is distinguished professor emeritus of English and creative writing at Boston University.
