Ruth Whitman

Ruth Whitman. Courtesy RuthWhitman.com.

Ruth Whitman (May 28, 1922 - December 1, 1999) was an American poet, translator, and academic.

Life

Whitman was born Ruth Bashein in New York City, the oldest daughter of Martha H.(Sherman) and Meyer David Bashein.

She earned a B.A. in English and Greek from Radcliffe College in 1944, and an M.A. in classics from Harvard University in 1947.

Whitman taught at Radcliffe, and at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, during her career.

Her poems were published in literary journals and magazines including AGNI and Ploughshares. She was an early cooperative member of Alice James Books, and was the poetry editor for Radcliffe Quarterly from 1980 - 1995.

Her 8th and last book is Hatshepshut, Speak to me (Wayne State University Press, 1992), and her most well-known and well-regarded is Tamsen Donner: A woman’s journey (Alice James Books, 1977). She also translated poetry from Yiddish,and wrote the beloved poem Sisters.

Her 1st marriage was to Cedric Whitman, with whom she eloped, and which produced two daughters, Rachel and Lee. That marriage ended in divorce in 1958. Ruth Whitman then married Firman Houghton, whom she divorced in 1964. That marriage resulted in a son, David. In 1966 she married Morton Sacks, a painter.

She died, after a long illness, at her home in Middletown, Rhode Island.

Recognition

Whitman's honors and awards include a Senior Fulbright Writer-in-Residence Fellowship to Hebrew University in Jerusalem, a Bunting Institute Fellowship, and a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship.

Publications

Poetry

• Blood & Milk Poems. New York: Clarke & Way, 1963.
• Tall Grasses. Boston: Impressions Workshop, 1965.
• The Marriage Wig, and other poems. Harcourt, Brace & World, 1968.
• The Passion of Lizzie Borden: New and selected poems. New York: October House, 1973.
• The Moon Over the Sea. Binghampton, NY: Bellevue, 1977.
• Tamsen Donner: A woman’s journey. Cambridge, MA: Alice James Books, 1977.
• Permanent Address: New poems, 1973-1980. Cambridge, MA: Alice James Books, 1980. w
• The Testing of Hanna Senesh (with essay by Livia Rothkirchen). Detroit, MI: Wayne State University Press, 1986.
• Laughing Gas: Poems, new and selected, 1963-1990. Detroit, MI: Wayne State University Press, 1990.
• Hatshepshut, Speak to me. Detroit, MI: Wayne State University Press, 1992.

Non-fiction

• Becoming a Poet: Source, process, practice. Boston: The Writer, 1982.

Translated

• Jacob Glatstein, The Selected Poems. New York: October House, 1972.
• Abraham Sutzkever, The Fiddle Rose: Poems, 1970-1927. Detroit, MI: Wayne State University Press, 1990.

Edited

• An Anthology of Modern Yiddish Poetry. New York: October House, 1966.
• Poemmaking: Poets in classrooms (edited with Harriet Feinberg). Lawrence, MA: Massachusetts Council of Teachers of English, 1975.

Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat.

Audio / video

• Ruth Whitman (tape). Kansas City, MO: New Letters, 1986.

See also

• List of U.S. poets

References

• Library of Congress Online Catalog > Ruth Whitman

External links

Poems

• "You Outlive All Your Diseases except One"
• Ruth Whitman at PoemHunter (4 poems)

Books

• Ruth Whitman at Amazon.

About

• Ruth Whitman in Jewish Women: A comprehensive encyclopedia
• Ruth Whitman, Poet, Former Radcliffe Seminars Instructor, Dies, Harvard Gazette
• "People of the Book 101: Ruth Whitman, translations & transformations"
• Ruth Whitman, poet Official website.