Theodore Huebner Roethke was an American poet, who published several volumes of poetry characterized by its rhythm and natural imagery. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1954 for his book, The Waking.
Roethke was born in Saginaw, Michigan. His father, Otto Roethke, was a German immigrant, who owned a large local greenhouse along with his brother (Theodore's uncle). Much of Theodore's childhood was spent in this greenhouse, as reflected by the use of natural images in his poetry. The poet's adolescent years were jarred, however, by his uncle's suicide and by the death of his father from cancer, both in early 1923, when Theodore (Ted) was only 15. He also suffered from many bouts of illnesses.[1] These deaths powerfully shaped Roethke's psychic and creative life.
He attended the University of Michigan and then here he briefly attended law school before entering Harvard University, where he studied under the poet Robert Hillyer. He was then forced to abandon graduate study for economic reasons and became a professor of English. He taught at several universities, among them Lafayette College, Pennsylvania State University and Bennington College.[2]
In 1940, he was expelled from his position at Lafayette and returned to Michigan. Just prior to his return, he had an affair with established poet and critic Rebecca Bogan, who later became one of his strongest early supporters.[3] While teaching at Michigan State University in East Lansing, he began to suffer from manic depression, which he used as a creative impetus for his poetry. His last teaching position was at the University of Washington, leading to an association with the poets of the American Northwest.
In 1953, Roethke married Beatrice O'Connell, a former student. Roethke did not inform O'Connell of his repeated episodes of depression, yet she remained dedicated to Roethke and his work. She ensured the posthumous publication of his final volume of poetry, The Far Field. Its best known, and certainly most eloquently luminous poem, is Roethke's 'Meditation at Oyster River'. Widely reprinted, 'Meditation' conveys a shock of lyrical recognition, an elevated naturalism, and a simplicity perhaps more engaging than any other of his work. Roethke, and this poem in particular, was deeply admired by the great conductor Carlos Kleiber.
Theodore Roethke suffered a heart attack in his friend S.Rasnics' swimming pool in 1963 and died on Bainbridge Island, Washington, aged 55. The pool was later filled in and is now a zen rock garden, which can be viewed by the public at the Bloedel Reserve, a 150-acre (60 hectare) former private estate. There is no sign to indicate that the rock garden was the site of Roethke's death.
However, there is a sign that commemorates Roetke's boyhood home and burial in Saginaw, Michigan. The historical marker notes in part:
Theodore Roethke (1908 - 1963) wrote of his poetry: The greenhouse "is my symbol for the whole of life, a womb, a heaven-on-earth." Roethke drew inspiration from his childhood experiences of working in his family's Saginaw floral company. Beginning is 1941 with Open House, the distinguished poet and teacher published extensively, receiving a Pulitzer Prize for poetry and two National Book Awards among an array of honors. In 1959 Pennsylvania University awarded him the prestigious Bollingen Prize. Roethke taught at Michigan State College , (present-day Michigan State University) and at colleges in Pennsylvania and Vermont, before joining the faculty of the University of Washington at Seattle in 1947. Roethke died in Washington in 1963. His remains are interred in Saginaw's Oakwood Cemetery
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