Schools
Granddaughter Of poet William Carlos Williams Speaks At Hoboken School
Daphne Williams Fox, granddaughter of famous poet William Carlos Williams, invited to speak at The Hudson School, an independent school.
HOBOKEN – This week at The Hudson School, English department faculty member Aleksander Zywicki hosted Daphne Williams Fox, the granddaughter of the late poet Dr. William Carlos Williams, to talk about her grandfather and do a reading of some of his poems.
This event was part of a series of poets invited throughout the year to give readings at the school.
During this event, Fox commented and gave background into many of Williams’ poems.
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Much of the discussion included Fox offering insights into the world of publishing and how she is trying to do more than just maintain her grandfather's estate, but also his legacy.
This was the first time that she had spoken at a school event.
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She expressed interest in continuing to do so and hopes to advocate for Dr. Williams’ legacy to more young people.
Injustice Done To Williams
A major part of her work, she said, is to alert people to the injustice done to her grandfather.
He was nominated and on track to become America's national "Poet Laureate" – the most prestigious position a poet can hold – but was, at the last minute, blacklisted and denied the position.
After this, according to Fox, he was the subject to racial profiling based on the fact that he was Puerto Rican. People called him a Communist and said he could not hold such a position.
Fox explained during the event that this made him feel "like a failure." However, after he passed, he was finally honored for his literary achievements and was posthumously awarded the Pulitzer Prize.
Aleksander Zywicki, the event’s host, explained that his highlight of the reading was “hearing her unpack some of [Williams’] poems and the setting that inspired him.”
She went on to describe details on how he wrote his poems and the influences behind them that have not been available to the public. In the future, she explained, she plans to publish these details along with the letters that have yet to be released to the public.
She plans to release these letters as part of a new biography of his life, which will also feature her commentary.
Williams, who lived from 1883 to 1963, was a physician as well as a poet.
Through the event, Fox explained that her main objective is to let people know that in addition to Williams' role as a celebrated poet, he was an important mentor to young poets in his day, often giving advice to both his own patients and other poets.
This story was written by Teddy Almond, a senior at The Hudson School. Check out his website to see his portfolio.
