Lanier, Sidney

Lanier, Sidney

▪ American poet

born Feb. 3, 1842, Macon, Ga., U.S.
died Sept. 7, 1881, Lynn, N.C.
 American musician and poet whose verse often suggests the rhythms and thematic development of music.

      Lanier was reared by devoutly religious parents in the traditions of the Old South. As a child he wrote verses and was especially fond of music. After graduation in 1860 from Oglethorpe College (now University), Atlanta, Ga., he served in the Civil War until his capture and subsequent imprisonment at Point Lookout, Md., where he contracted tuberculosis. In 1867 he married Mary Day, also of Macon; and in the same year he published his first book, the novel Tiger-Lilies, a mixture of German philosophy, Southern traditional romance, and his own war experiences. After working in his father's law office at Macon, teaching school at Prattville, Ala., and traveling for his health in Texas, he accepted in 1873 a position as first flutist in the Peabody Orchestra, Baltimore. With numerous poems already published in magazines, he wrote several potboilers and played private concerts and delivered lectures to small groups.

      “Corn” (1875), a poem treating agricultural conditions in the South, and “The Symphony” (1875), treating industrial conditions in the North, brought Lanier national recognition. Adverse criticism of his “Centennial Meditation” in 1876 launched him on an investigation of verse technique that he continued until his death. The Song of the Chattahoochee, a volume of poems, was published in 1877. Appointed to Johns Hopkins University in 1879, he delivered a series of lectures on verse technique, the early English poets, and the English novel, later published as The Science of English Verse (1880), Shakspere and his Forerunners (1902), and The English Novel (1883; rev. ed. 1897). In the spring of 1881, when advanced tuberculosis made further work impossible, he established camp quarters at Lynn, N.C., where he died. Three years later his wife published an enlarged edition of his poems. The complete edition of his works (10 volumes) appeared in 1945.

Additional Reading
Aubrey Harrison Starke, Sidney Lanier: A Biographical and Critical Study (1933, reissued 1964); Jack De Bellis, Sidney Lanier (1972); and Jane S. Gabin, A Living Minstrelsy: The Poetry and Music of Sidney Lanier (1985).

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Lanier,Sidney — La·nier (lə nîrʹ), Sidney. 1842 1881. American writer and musician noted for his melodic poems, including “The Marshes of Glynn” (1878). His novel Tiger Lilies (1867) is based on his experiences as a Confederate soldier. * * * …   Universalium

  • Lanier, Sidney — (1842 1881)    Miscellaneous writer, s. of a lawyer of Huguenot descent, was b. at Macon, Georgia. He had a varied career, having been successively soldier, shopman, teacher, lawyer, musician, and prof. His first literary venture was a novel,… …   Short biographical dictionary of English literature

  • Lanier, Sidney —    см. Лэнир, Сидни …   Писатели США. Краткие творческие биографии

  • Sidney Lanier — Born February 3, 1842(1842 02 03) Macon, Georgia Died September 7, 1881( …   Wikipedia

  • Sidney Lanier — Sidney Clopton Lanier (* 3. Februar 1842 in Macon, Georgia; † 7. September 1881 in Lynn, North Carolina) war ein US amerikanischer Dichter und Musiker. Er galt neben …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Sidney Lanier — (3 février 1842 – 7 septembre 1881) était un poète et musicien américain. Né à Macon, de Robert Sampson Lanier et Mary Jane Anderson, il avait des ancêtres anglais et français. Il fit ses étude …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Lanier High School (San Antonio, Texas) — Sidney Lanier High School is a local high school of the San Antonio Independent School District in the Westside of San Antonio, Texas. Sidney Lanier High School first opened in 1915 as McKinley Elementary School. In 1923, McKinley was renamed… …   Wikipedia

  • Lanier County, Georgia — Location in the state of Georgia …   Wikipedia

  • Lanier — can refer to:People* Members of a Lanier family renown in the British court for its musical talent: ** Nicholas Lanier the Elder, French court musician ** Nicholas Lanier, English composer, singer, lutenist and painter ** Clement Lanier, musician …   Wikipedia

  • Lanier — ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Bob Lanier (* 1948), US amerikanischer Basketballspieler Jaron Lanier (* 1960), US amerikanischer Autor und Unternehmer Jonas Lanier (* 1982), deutscher Eishockeyspieler Nicholas Lanier (1588–1666),… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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