| Ted Hughes |
Article Index for Ted |
Website Links For Ted |
Information AboutTed Hughes |
|
EARLY LIFE Hughes was born on , South Yorkshire , where they ran a newspaper and tobacco shop. He also had a brother, Gerald, who was ten years older than him as well as a sister, Olwyn, who was two years older than him. PERSONAL LIFE Hughes studied English , Anthropology and Archaeology at Pembroke College, Cambridge , where he met fellow poet Sylvia Plath . They married on June 16 , 1956 and separated in the autumn of 1962 . Hughes' role in Plath's suicide in 1963 has long been a subject of much speculation by critics. As Plath's widower, Hughes became the executor of Plath’s personal and literary estates. He oversaw the publication of her manuscripts, including '' Ariel '' ( 1966 ). He also destroyed the final volume of Plath’s journal, detailing their last three years together. Six years after Plath's death, on March 25 , 1969 , Assia Wevill (Hughes's lover) killed herself and their daughter, Alexandra Tatiana Eloise Wevill, nicknamed Shura, who had been born on March 3 , 1965 . In August 1970 , Hughes married Carol Orchard, a nurse. They remained together until his death on October 28 1998 . He received the Order Of Merit from the Queen Elizabeth II Of The United Kingdom just before his death. Ted died after an 18-month-long battle with secondary liver Cancer . WRITINGS Hughes' earlier poetic work is rooted in nature and, in particular, the innocent savagery of animals ( Tennyson 's phrase "nature, red in tooth and claw" could have been written for Hughes). His later work is deeply reliant upon Myth and the Bard ic tradition. Hughes' first collection, ''Hawk in the Rain'' ( 1957 ) attracted considerable critical acclaim. In 1959 he won the Galbraith Prize which brought $5000. His most significant work is perhaps '' Crow '' ( 1970 ). ''Tales from Ovid'' ( 1997 ) contains a selection of free verse translations from Ovid 's ''Metamorphoses''. In '' Birthday Letters '', Hughes broke his silence on Plath , detailing aspects of their life together and his own behaviour at the time. The cover artwork was by their daughter Frieda . In addition to poetry, Hughes wrote classical Opera Libretto s and children's books. One of these, '' The Iron Man '', became the basis of Pete Townshend 's Rock Opera of the same name, and the animated film '' The Iron Giant .'' Hughes was appointed as Poet Laureate (the British Queen 's official poet) in 1984 following the death of John Betjeman (although it was later hinted that Hughes was second choice for the appointment after Philip Larkin , the preferred nominee, declined, feeling his poetic gifts spent). Hughes served in this position until his death in 1998. His definitive 1333-page ''Collected Poems'' (Faber & Faber) appeared in 2003 . BIBLIOGRAPHY Poetry
Anthologies edited by Hughes
Prose
Books for Children
EXTERNAL LINKS
|
|
|