William Carlos Williams

William Carlos Williams (September 17, 1883 – March 4, 1963) was an influential American poet and physician closely associated with modernism and imagism.

William Carlos Williams by Man Ray

Early Life

Williams was born in Rutherford, New Jersey. He was the son of an English father and a Puerto Rican mother of French Basque and Dutch Jewish descent. Williams received his primary and secondary education in Rutherford until 1897, when he was sent for two years to a school near Geneva and to Paris. He attended Horace Mann High School upon his return to New York City and, after having passed a special examination, he was admitted in 1902 to the medical school of the University of Pennsylvania, from which he graduated in 1906.

Career

Williams began publishing in small magazines and embarked on a career as a poet and writer. His work consists of short stories, poems, plays, novels, critical essays, an autobiography, translations and correspondence. He wrote at night and spent weekends in New York City with friends - writers and artists like the avant-garde painters Marcel Duchamp and Francis Picabia and the poets Wallace Stevens and Marianne Moore.

Literary Style

Williams' work often reflects his commitment to the imagist movement, which advocated for clear, sharp language and a reliance on the power of imagery. His most anthologized poem, "The Red Wheelbarrow," is an example of this style. Williams also experimented with varying structures and styles throughout his career, notably in his five-book epic poem about the American experience, "Paterson."

Legacy

Williams' influence on American poetry is significant. His use of everyday language and his insistence on the importance of local settings marked a new course for modern literature. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1963 for his collection "Pictures from Brueghel and Other Poems."

See Also

• Modernism
• Imagism
• American Poetry

References

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