Craft: Theodore Enslin

Theodore Enslin (1925-2011) was a highly prolific, experimental poet. He published more than 70 books, each one avant-garde and rare. His first book, The Work Proposed, was published in 1958 by Cid Corman’s Origin Press. His work is so extensive that his Then and Now: Selected Poems, 1943-93 is 800 pages of poetry.

Enslin: “Which, for me , / explains / the extent / of bamboo / thickets.”

The avant-garde in poetry (as in all art) eventually becomes garde, or the standardization of formerly new advances in techniques. For example, Be-Bop, which began as avant-garde Black music in the 1940s, is now the typical format, instrumentation, and style of much jazz expression.

Enslin moved to Washington County, Maine in 1960 and did odd jobs to make a living. His isolation, both geographic and stylistic, has put him on the periphery of most American poetry for the past 60 years. 

Enslin studied music with Nadia Boulanger, and his poetry is highly influenced by music, musical composition, musical forms (such as the rondo, or variations), and by the late serialism of Igor Stravinsky.