The love of poetry drives author

During the three years he wrote an international poetry column for The Washington Post, Ed Hirsch says he had a tremendous response from both poets and general readers from all over the world.

"It was very encouraging to me and led me to believe that poetry has a greater place in the cultural dialogue than we have realized," Hirsch said by phone from Fresno, Calif. (He lives in New York and is president of the Guggenheim Foundation.)

Hirsch has compiled his columns into a wondrous book, "Poet's Choice," which makes a suitable companion volume to his earlier work, "How to Read a Poem (and Fall in Love With Poetry)."

He has also written six volumes of his own poetry, but "Poet's Choice" has short chapters on multiple poets with helpful advice about how to appreciate their work.

It's Hirsch's contention that neither the poet nor the reader necessarily "begins with a deep interest in language, although the more you read poetry, the more sensitive you become to the materiality of language. Language is the medium of the arts. In reading poetry, you must understand that the way it is said is inseparable from what is being said."

Because Hirsch loves the work of international poets, it is often necessary to translate those poems into English. "First of all, translating a poem from one language to another is impossible, but necessary. You have to be sensitive to the original language and to make the poem in the new language. Translating word for word does not work. A poem written in another language is remade into a creative entity in English."

Like many poets writing today, Hirsch believes "poetry ought to be as accessible to as wide an audience as possible, and poetry can find a larger audience — but it's crucial that you don't change the essential nature of poetry. The readers have to know how to go about thinking about poetry; they want a way in. Poetry is an art form and the deepest reading of it is sensitive to the nuances of the art."

As an expert on public education in America, Hirsch believes poetry has not been taught well in schools. "My central impulse is to say poetry belongs to everyone. It's not just for the elite. The art of poetry is more available than you think. Poets are not entirely born with a gift from the Gods. There is a lot that can be learned about the art."

On the other hand, Hirsch thinks a potential poet must also read poetry. "It means study. There is an element of craft involved. If poetry appeared in newspapers rather than in literary magazines, it would change the way people respond to poetry. Poetry enriches people and changes them."