Warren, Robert Penn

Warren, Robert Penn
born April 24, 1905, Guthrie, Ky., U.S.
died Sept. 15, 1989, Stratton, Vt.

U.S. novelist, poet, and critic.

Warren attended Vanderbilt University, where he joined the Fugitives, a group of poets who advocated the agrarian way of life in the South. Later he taught at several colleges and universities and helped found and edit The Southern Review (1935–42), possibly the most influential American literary magazine of the time. His writings often treat moral dilemmas in a South beset by the erosion of its traditional rural values. His best-known novel is All the King's Men (1946, Pulitzer Prize; film, 1949). The short-story volume The Circus in the Attic (1948) contains the notable "Blackberry Winter." He won Pulitzer prizes for poetry in 1958 and 1979 and became the first U.S. poet laureate in 1986.

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▪ American writer
born April 24, 1905, Guthrie, Ky., U.S.
died Sept. 15, 1989, Stratton, Vt.

      American novelist, poet, critic, and teacher, best-known for his treatment of moral dilemmas in a South beset by the erosion of its traditional, rural values. He became the first poet laureate of the United States in 1986.

      In 1921 Warren entered Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tenn., where he joined a group of poets who called themselves the Fugitives (Fugitive) (q.v.). Warren was among several of the Fugitives who joined with other Southerners to publish the anthology of essays I'll Take My Stand (1930), a plea for the agrarian way of life in the South.

      After graduation from Vanderbilt in 1925, he studied at the University of California, Berkeley (M.A., 1927), and at Yale. He then went to the University of Oxford as a Rhodes scholar. From 1930 to 1950 he served on the faculty of several colleges and universities—including Vanderbilt and the University of Minnesota. With Cleanth Brooks and Charles W. Pipkin, he founded and edited The Southern Review (1935–42), possibly the most influential American literary magazine of the time. He taught at Yale University from 1951 to 1973. His Understanding Poetry (1938) and Understanding Fiction (1943), both written with Cleanth Brooks, were enormously influential in spreading the doctrines of the New Criticism (q.v.).

      Warren's first novel, Night Rider (1939), is based on the tobacco war (1905–08) between the independent growers in Kentucky and the large tobacco companies. It anticipates much of his later fiction in the way it treats a historical event with tragic irony, emphasizes violence, and portrays individuals caught in moral quandaries. His best-known novel, All the King's Men (1946), is based on the career of the Louisiana demagogue Huey Long and tells the story of an idealistic politician whose lust for power corrupts him and those around him. This novel won the Pulitzer Prize in 1947 and, when made into a film, won the Academy Award for best motion picture of 1949. Warren's other novels include At Heaven's Gate (1943); World Enough and Time (1950), which centres on a controversial murder trial in Kentucky in the 19th century; Band of Angels (1956); and The Cave (1959). His long narrative poem, Brother to Dragons (1953), dealing with the brutal murder of a slave by two nephews of Thomas Jefferson, is essentially a versified novel, and his poetry generally exhibits many of the concerns of his fiction. His other volumes of poetry include Promises: Poems, 1954–1956; You, Emperors, and Others (1960); Audubon: A Vision (1969); Now and Then; Poems 1976–1978; Rumor Verified (1981); Chief Joseph (1983); and New and Selected Poems, 1923–1985 (1985). The Circus in the Attic (1948), which included “Blackberry Winter,” considered by some critics to be one of Warren's supreme achievements, is a volume of short stories, and Selected Essays (1958) is a collection of some of his critical writings.

      Besides receiving the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, Warren twice won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry (1958, 1979) and, at the time of his selection as poet laureate in 1986, was the only person ever to win the prize in both categories. In his later years he tended to concentrate on his poetry.

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  • Warren,Robert Penn — Warren, Robert Penn. 1905 1989. American writer and critic primarily known for his poetry. His works include the novel All the King s Men (1946) and many poetry collections, such as Promises (1957). In 1985 he was appointed the first American… …   Universalium

  • Warren, Robert Penn — ► (1905 89) Escritor estadounidense. Sus novelas son históricas, de ambiente sureño, con influencias de la cultura bíblica. Autor de Todos los hombres del rey (premio Pulitzer 1946). * * * (24 abr. 1905, Guthrie, Ky., EE.UU.–15 sep. 1989,… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Warren, Robert Penn —    см. Уоррен, Роберт Пени …   Писатели США. Краткие творческие биографии

  • Robert Penn Warren — 1968 Robert Penn Warren (* 24. April 1905 in Guthrie, Todd County, Kentucky; † 15. September 1989 in Stratton, Vermont) war ein amerikanischer Schriftsteller und Literaturkritiker. Er veröffentlichte 16 Bände mit Gedichten und 10 Romane. Er war …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Robert Penn Warren — (April 24, 1905 ndash; September 15, 1989) was an American poet, novelist, and literary critic, and was one of the founders of New Criticism. He was also a charter member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers. He is the only person to have won… …   Wikipedia

  • Robert Penn Warren — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Robert Penn Warren Robert Penn Warren (24 de abril de 1905 15 de septiembre de 1989) fue un poeta estadounidense, novelista y crítico literario, así como uno de los fundadores de la Nueva Crítica. Fue también miembro …   Wikipedia Español

  • Robert Penn Warren — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Warren. Robert Penn Warren Robert Penn Warr …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Robert Penn Warren — noun United States writer and poet (1905 1989) • Syn: ↑Warren • Instance Hypernyms: ↑writer, ↑author, ↑poet * * * Robert Penn Warren [Robert Penn Warren …   Useful english dictionary

  • Robert Penn Warren — ➡ Warren (II) * * * …   Universalium

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