{"id":17164,"date":"2023-10-17T09:35:47","date_gmt":"2023-10-17T16:35:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/?p=17164"},"modified":"2023-11-21T17:48:32","modified_gmt":"2023-11-22T01:48:32","slug":"louise-gluck-poetic-voice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/","title":{"rendered":"Louise Gl\u00fcck honed her poetic voice across a lifetime to speak to us from beyond the grave"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n    \n                                \n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-hero \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-hero\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img\n                            data-src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top-768x432.jpg\"\n          data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top-1920x1080.jpg 1920w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top-1280x720.jpg 1280w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top-768x432.jpg 768w\"          data-sizes=\"(min-width:1200px) 75vw, (min-width:768px) 83vw, 100vw\"          class=\"lazyload\"\n        \n                  role=\"none\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n  \n      <div class=\"image-caption\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  Louise Gl\u00fcck was photographed outside her home in Cambridge, Mass., after being named the 2020 Nobel laureate in literature. (Photo: Daniel Ebersole\/Nobel Prize Outreach.)\n\n\n<\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"text-wrapper\">\n          <nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\" class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n        <ul>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\">News<\/a><\/li>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\/?category=arts-and-culture\">Arts and Culture<\/a><\/li>\n                  <\/ul>\n      <\/nav>\n    \n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--page-title\">\n\n    \n  <h1>Louise Gl\u00fcck honed her poetic voice across a lifetime to speak to us from beyond the grave<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n          <div class=\"subtitle\">\n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  A celebrated poet and Nobel laureate, Louise Gl\u00fcck wrote about mortality, broken families and human frailty with devastating wryness and quiet beauty.\n\n\n<\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    \n           <strong class=\"author-field\"><span >By<\/span><a href=\"mailto:communication@dornsife.usc.edu\">Amy Cannon<\/a><\/strong>\n    \n          <span class=\"post-date-field\">October 17, 2023<\/span>\n      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--social-share \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--social-share\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"content-wrapper\">\n    <span class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list\" style=\"line-height: 32px;\">\n      <span class=\"title\">\n        Share\n      <\/span>\n                        <a class=\"a2a_button_copy_link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#copy_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Link\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_copy_link\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m7.43475275 9.52380952-2.17490843 2.26076008c-1.08745421 1.058837-1.68841575 2.518315-1.68841575 4.0350275 0 1.5167124.60096154 2.9475732 1.68841575 4.0350274 1.058837 1.0874543 2.51831502 1.6884158 4.03502747 1.6884158 1.44087681 0 2.80427251-.5423678 3.86936601-1.5289606l.1656615-.1594552 2.2321428-2.2321428-1.6311813-1.6311813-2.2321429 2.26076c-.6581959.658196-1.5167124 1.0016026-2.43246332 1.0016026s-1.7742674-.3434066-2.43246337-1.0016026c-.65819597-.6581959-1.00160257-1.5167124-1.00160257-2.4324633 0-.8547009.2991453-1.6595442.87416905-2.2981957l.12743352-.1342677 2.23214286-2.2321429zm6.88661855-.40736607-5.26116068 5.26116075 1.61881868 1.6188186 5.2611607-5.2611607zm1.3837569-5.54501488c-1.4408768 0-2.8042725.54236779-3.869366 1.52896062l-.1656615.15945513-2.23214282 2.23214286 1.63118132 1.63118132 2.2321429-2.23214286c.6581959-.65819597 1.5167124-1.00160256 2.4324633-1.00160256s1.7742674.34340659 2.4324634 1.00160256 1.0016026 1.51671246 1.0016026 2.43246337c0 .85470089-.2991453 1.65954419-.8741691 2.29819559l-.1274335.1342678-2.2321429 2.2321428 1.5739469 1.5739469 2.2321429-2.2321428c1.0874542-1.058837 1.6884157-2.5183151 1.6884157-4.03502751 0-1.51671245-.6009615-2.94757326-1.6884157-4.03502747-1.058837-1.08745421-2.518315-1.68841575-4.0350275-1.68841575z\" transform=\"translate(-3 -3)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Copy Link<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_facebook\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#facebook\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Facebook\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_facebook\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m23.9512 6h-16.9024c-.57923625 0-1.0488.46956375-1.0488 1.0488v16.9024c0 .5792362.46956375 1.0488 1.0488 1.0488h9.10024v-7.34768h-2.46772v-2.87584h2.46772v-2.11508c0-2.45404 1.49872-3.79012 3.68828-3.79012.7389668-.00263323 1.4775241.03516995 2.21236.11324v2.56348h-1.51392c-1.18788 0-1.4174.56544-1.4174 1.39612v1.8316h2.84772l-.37088 2.87584h-2.47684v7.34844h4.83284c.5792362 0 1.0488-.4695638 1.0488-1.0488v-16.9024c0-.57923625-.4695638-1.0488-1.0488-1.0488z\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" transform=\"translate(-6 -6)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Facebook<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_twitter\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#twitter\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"X\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_twitter\">\n              <svg version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\"\n\t y=\"0px\" viewBox=\"0 0 30 30\" enable-background=\"new 0 0 30 30\" xml:space=\"preserve\" width=\"19\" height=\"19\">\n<path fill=\"#000\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M14.5,16.2l-0.8-1.1l-6.3-9h2.7l5.1,7.3l0.8,1.1\n\tl6.6,9.4h-2.7L14.5,16.2L14.5,16.2z M16.9,13.4l7.4-8.7h-1.8l-6.5,7.5L11,4.8H5l7.8,11.4L5,25.2h1.8l6.8-7.9l5.5,7.9h6L16.9,13.4\n\tL16.9,13.4z\"\/>\n<\/svg>\n\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">X<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_linkedin\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#linkedin\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Linkedin\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_linkedin\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m25 21.4220779c0 1.974026-1.6038961 3.5779221-3.5779221 3.5779221h-11.84415582c-1.97402598 0-3.57792208-1.6038961-3.57792208-3.5779221v-11.84415582c0-1.97402598 1.6038961-3.57792208 3.57792208-3.57792208h11.84415582c1.974026 0 3.5779221 1.6038961 3.5779221 3.57792208zm-14.5584416-12.21428569c-.98701295 0-1.60389606.61688311-1.60389606 1.48051949-.12337663.8636364.49350649 1.4805195 1.48051946 1.4805195.987013 0 1.6038961-.6168831 1.6038961-1.4805195 0-.86363638-.6168831-1.48051949-1.4805195-1.48051949zm1.3571429 12.70779219v-8.6363636h-2.83766234v8.6363636zm10.2402597 0v-4.9350649c0-2.5909091-1.3571428-3.8246753-3.3311688-3.8246753-1.4805195 0-2.0974026.8636363-2.4675325 1.4805194v-1.2337662h-2.8376623v8.6363636h2.8376623v-4.9350649c0-.2467532 0-.4935065.1233767-.7402597.1233766-.4935065.6168831-.987013 1.4805194-.987013.987013 0 1.4805195.7402597 1.4805195 1.974026v4.564935z\" transform=\"translate(-6 -6)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">LinkedIn<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_bluesky\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#bluesky\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Bluesky\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_bluesky\">\n              <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\">\n                <path fill=\"#00000\" d=\"M12 10.8c-1.087-2.114-4.046-6.053-6.798-7.995C2.566.944 1.561 1.266.902 1.565C.139 1.908 0 3.08 0 3.768c0 .69.378 5.65.624 6.479c.815 2.736 3.713 3.66 6.383 3.364c.136-.02.275-.039.415-.056c-.138.022-.276.04-.415.056c-3.912.58-7.387 2.005-2.83 7.078c5.013 5.19 6.87-1.113 7.823-4.308c.953 3.195 2.05 9.271 7.733 4.308c4.267-4.308 1.172-6.498-2.74-7.078a8.741 8.741 0 0 1-.415-.056c.14.017.279.036.415.056c2.67.297 5.568-.628 6.383-3.364c.246-.828.624-5.79.624-6.478c0-.69-.139-1.861-.902-2.206c-.659-.298-1.664-.62-4.3 1.24C16.046 4.748 13.087 8.687 12 10.8\"  fill-rule=\"evenodd\" \/>\n              <\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Bluesky<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_email\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#email\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"E-mail\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_print\">\n              <svg height=\"12\" viewBox=\"0 0 18 12\" width=\"18\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m8.14285714 9.42857143c-.17142857 0-.34285714 0-.51428571.08571428l7.28571427 6.34285719c.3428572.2571428.6857143.2571428.9428572 0l7.2857142-6.34285719c-.0857142-.08571428-.2571428-.08571428-.4285714-.08571428zm-1.28571428 1.11428567v.1714286 8.5714286c0 .6857143.6 1.2857143 1.28571428 1.2857143h14.57142856c.6857143 0 1.2857143-.6 1.2857143-1.2857143v-8.5714286c0-.0857143 0-.0857143 0-.1714286l-7.2 6.3428572c-.7714286.6857143-1.8857143.6857143-2.6571429 0z\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" transform=\"translate(-6 -9)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Email<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                  <\/span>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n \n\n\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--rich-text \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--rich-text\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      \n<div class=\"f--field f--wysiwyg\">\n\n    \n  <p>When asked what her response was to being awarded the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2020\/10\/08\/books\/louise-gluck-nobel-prize-literature.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Nobel Prize in literature in 2020<\/a>, Louise Gl\u00fcck replied that she was \u201ccompletely flabbergasted.\u201d She said she had thought it \u201cextremely unlikely that I would ever have this particular event to deal with in my life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gl\u00fcck, who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/obituaries\/2023\/10\/13\/louise-gluck-dead\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">died on Oct. 13, 2023<\/a>, at the age of 80, may have been taken aback that she was granted this exalted honor, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/newshour\/arts\/louise-gluck-prize-winning-poet-of-terse-and-candid-lyricism-dies-at-80\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">first American poet<\/a> to win since T.S. Eliot in 1948. But her win was far less surprising to those who know and love her work, and who now mourn her loss.<\/p>\n<p>The Nobel Committee for Literature selected Gl\u00fcck for this literary achievement to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nobelprize.org\/prizes\/literature\/2020\/gluck\/facts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">honor her<\/a> \u201cunmistakable poetic voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence universal.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As a <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/cf\/faculty-and-staff\/faculty.cfm?pid=1062252\">poet and professor of writing<\/a>, I have long been an admirer of Gl\u00fcck\u2019s spare and striking work. Her lyric voice still reverberates after her death, in part because of how consistently she turned her attention to questions of mortality.<\/p>\n<h2>A cruel clarity of vision<\/h2>\n<p>Gl\u00fcck said, in the same interview about her Nobel win, \u201cI\u2019ve written about death since I could write.\u201d Her work turns again and again to the human story, those elemental facets of life that unite people. She went on to say, \u201cI look for archetypal experience, and I assume that my struggles and joys are not unique.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>What\u2019s common to humanity characterizes her work: Her focus on lasting themes of family and heartache and loss has earned her a wide audience and lasting acclaim. Before being awarded the Nobel Prize, Gl\u00fcck won the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalbook.org\/people\/louise-gluck\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">National Book Award<\/a> for \u201cFaithful and Virtuous Night\u201d in 2014 and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pulitzer.org\/winners\/louise-gluck\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pulitzer Prize<\/a> for \u201cWild Iris\u201d in 1992, among other accolades.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video-embed\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/FWQUMaI3wPs?wmode=transparent&amp;start=0\" width=\"440\" height=\"260\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/div><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">Louise Gl\u00fcck reads selected poems.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Though well received, Gl\u00fcck\u2019s work is not always inviting. It can have an icy abruptness; she often writes speakers who have a cruel clarity of vision. In her poem \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.poetryfoundation.org\/poems\/49601\/mock-orange\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Mock Orange<\/a>\u201d she writes:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>It is not the moon, I tell you.<\/p>\n<p>It is these flowers<\/p>\n<p>lighting the yard.<\/p>\n<p>I hate them.<\/p>\n<p>I hate them as I hate sex<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>which she goes on to describe as \u201cthe low, humiliating \/ premise of union.\u201d As the poem ends, her speaker asks, \u201cHow can I be content \/ when there is still \/ that odor in the world?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The lyric \u201cI,\u201d the first-person speaker of Gl\u00fcck\u2019s poems, is rarely content. Though Gl\u00fcck wrote in the voice of many characters and from many perspectives, woven throughout her work is a perspective that tends to find the world \u2013 and the self \u2013 wanting.<\/p>\n<p>It may be surprising, then, how strongly readers have responded to her still, spare, often quietly devastating work. It attends to daily human struggles as if from a distance, what the critic Helen Vendler described as \u201calmost through the <a href=\"https:\/\/newrepublic.com\/article\/159665\/poetry-louise-gluck\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">wrong end of a telescope<\/a>.\u201d As in the old adage about what poetry can do, Gl\u00fcck <a href=\"https:\/\/theworld.com\/%7Eraparker\/exploring\/tseliot\/works\/essays\/andrew_marvell.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">made the familiar strange<\/a>, which is perhaps what continues to draw readers to her work: It renders the close-up experiences of heartbreak and hope from a new perspective.<\/p>\n<h2>Ancient voices speaking to the everyday<\/h2>\n<figure style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/554070\/original\/file-20231016-25-r0pb7x.jpg\" alt=\"Poster with an image of a young Louise Gl\u00fcck leaning against a brick wall, promoting a reading at the Poetry Center of the Museum of Contemporary Art\" width=\"300\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A poster promotes a Louise Gl\u00fcck reading at the Poetry Center of Chicago on Jan. 21, 1977. (Image: Courtesy of Chicago Poetry Center.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Gl\u00fcck also made the strange familiar, especially the distant world of myth. She brought ancient figures down to a human level by exploring everyday dramas through their voices.<\/p>\n<p>She wrote often of families and the ways they fail each other, though slantingly, as when Gl\u00fcck explores strained dynamics between mothers and daughters via the Greek goddesses <a href=\"https:\/\/poets.org\/poem\/persephone-wanderer\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Demeter and Persephone<\/a>. She makes vivid the challenges of marriage through the characters of Homer\u2019s \u201cOdyssey\u201d in her 1996 book \u201cMeadowlands.\u201d A poem from that work, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ronnowpoetry.com\/contents\/gluck\/Telemachus.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Telemachus\u2019 Detachment<\/a>,\u201d envisages the son of Odysseus and Penelope reflecting on his parents\u2019 union as \u201cheartbreaking, but also \/ insane. Also \/ very funny.\u201d Her register was wide: Though Gl\u00fcck wrote with a kind of detachment about even the most intimate of emotions, it was often via characters who spoke wryly, abruptly, with gallows humor and a gimlet eye for human frailty.<\/p>\n<p>Failure and loss frequently gave rise to her work: Her fifth book, \u201cArarat,\u201d published in 1990, arose after her father\u2019s death; her 1999 book, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.proquest.com\/scholarly-journals\/louise-glucks-nine-lives\/docview\/231943493\/se-2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Vita Nova,<\/a>\u201d emerged from the dissolution of her marriage. Even her titles exemplify the dense literary references that characterize her work:<br \/>\n\u201cArarat\u201d echoes the story of Noah\u2019s flood, and \u201cVita Nova\u201d is named after Dante Alighieri\u2019s poems on the death of his beloved. In \u201cVita Nova,\u201d the way we fail those we love is explored via the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice.<\/p>\n<h2>Contact even at a distance<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cWild Iris,\u201d one of Gl\u00fcck\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/poets.org\/poet\/louise-gluck\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">most honored works<\/a>, winning both the Pulitzer Prize and The Poetry Society of America\u2019s William Carlos Williams Award, is exemplary of her style. A book of poems written after a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.neh.gov\/about\/awards\/national-humanities-medals\/louise-gl%C3%BCck\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">paralyzing period of writer\u2019s block<\/a>, it is the voice of flowers, of prayers, of the soul beyond death and of God speaking back through her poems. Even when talking to God, the speaker remains acerbic and questioning: The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.poetryfoundation.org\/poems\/49758\/vespers-once-i-believed-in-you\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">first line of one poem<\/a> to God begins \u201cOnce, I believed in you \u2026 .\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The title piece of the collection speaks in the voice of a flower emerging in spring and as a speaker from beyond the grave, \u201cwhatever \/ returns from oblivion returns \/ to find a voice.\u201d Another poem in the voice of \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.poetryfoundation.org\/poems\/49760\/the-silver-lily\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Silver Lily<\/a>\u201d says \u201cWe have come too far together toward the end now \/ to fear the end.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video-embed\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/iDL8IMLA0Uc?wmode=transparent&amp;start=0\" width=\"440\" height=\"260\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/div><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">Louise Gl\u00fcck reads from \u2018Faithful and Virtuous Night\u2019.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Louise Gl\u00fcck\u2019s poems can feel like they come at the drama of life from a distance: The voice in her poems has been described as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/poems-louise-gl-ck\/1120357967\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">vatic<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/newrepublic.com\/article\/159665\/poetry-louise-gluck\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">divinatory<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2020\/10\/08\/books\/louise-gluck-nobel-prize-literature.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Delphic<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/link.gale.com\/apps\/doc\/CX3407600191\/GVRL?u=usocal_main&amp;sid=bookmark-GVRL&amp;xid=9003490a\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">haunting<\/a>, evoking a ghost speaking across time, able to narrate its own story with a dispassionate disinterest.<\/p>\n<p>In the end, it was this carefully crafted, piercing observation of what is core to our human struggle that continues to animate Gl\u00fcck\u2019s work for so many. If ever a poetic voice was honed across a lifetime to speak to us from beyond the grave, it\u2019s Gl\u00fcck\u2019s.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;\" src=\"https:\/\/counter.theconversation.com\/content\/215659\/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic\" alt=\"The Conversation\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" \/><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https:\/\/theconversation.com\/republishing-guidelines --><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/amy-cannon-1365666\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Amy Cannon<\/a>, Associate Professor of Writing, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/institutions\/usc-dornsife-college-of-letters-arts-and-sciences-2669\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>This article is republished from <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/louise-gluck-honed-her-poetic-voice-across-a-lifetime-to-speak-to-us-from-beyond-the-grave-215659\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A celebrated poet and Nobel laureate, Louise Gl\u00fcck wrote about mortality, broken families and human frailty with devastating wryness and quiet beauty.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":17166,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[87,141,316,140,83],"class_list":["post-17164","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-and-culture","tag-expert-viewpoint","tag-literature","tag-nobel-prize","tag-poetry","tag-the-conversation"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Louise Gl\u00fcck honed her poetic voice across a lifetime to speak to us from beyond the grave<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Celebrated poet and Nobel laureate Louise Gl\u00fcck wrote about mortality, broken families and human frailty with wryness and quiet beauty.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Poet and Nobel laureate Louise Gl\u00fcck\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Celebrated poet and Nobel laureate Louise Gl\u00fcck wrote about mortality, broken families and human frailty with wryness and quiet beauty.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"USC Dornsife News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uscdornsife\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-10-17T16:35:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-11-22T01:48:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1150\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Michael Liu\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@uscdornsife\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@uscdornsife\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Michael Liu\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/d03084ed5319ed7575c96017879a7447\"},\"headline\":\"Louise Gl\u00fcck honed her poetic voice across a lifetime to speak to us from beyond the grave\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-10-17T16:35:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-11-22T01:48:32+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/\"},\"wordCount\":18,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"expert viewpoint\",\"literature\",\"nobel prize\",\"poetry\",\"the conversation\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Arts and Culture\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/\",\"name\":\"Poet and Nobel laureate Louise Gl\u00fcck\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-10-17T16:35:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-11-22T01:48:32+00:00\",\"description\":\"Celebrated poet and Nobel laureate Louise Gl\u00fcck wrote about mortality, broken families and human frailty with wryness and quiet beauty.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top.jpg\",\"width\":2000,\"height\":1150},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Louise Gl\u00fcck honed her poetic voice across a lifetime to speak to us from beyond the grave\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/\",\"name\":\"USC Dornsife News\",\"description\":\"USC Dornsife news and events\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization\",\"name\":\"USC Dornsife News\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/01\/USC-Dornsife-Cardinal-Black-on-White-RGB.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/01\/USC-Dornsife-Cardinal-Black-on-White-RGB.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":330,\"caption\":\"USC Dornsife News\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uscdornsife\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/uscdornsife\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/uscdornsife\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/USCCollege\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/school\/uscdornsife\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/d03084ed5319ed7575c96017879a7447\",\"name\":\"Michael Liu\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/16962c8d3900280cb2e47f931ab45f9c2432ea07c167e9c00a6c2f8a0ec3d61f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/16962c8d3900280cb2e47f931ab45f9c2432ea07c167e9c00a6c2f8a0ec3d61f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Michael Liu\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/author\/liumk\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Louise Gl\u00fcck honed her poetic voice across a lifetime to speak to us from beyond the grave","description":"Celebrated poet and Nobel laureate Louise Gl\u00fcck wrote about mortality, broken families and human frailty with wryness and quiet beauty.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Poet and Nobel laureate Louise Gl\u00fcck","og_description":"Celebrated poet and Nobel laureate Louise Gl\u00fcck wrote about mortality, broken families and human frailty with wryness and quiet beauty.","og_url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/","og_site_name":"USC Dornsife News","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uscdornsife","article_published_time":"2023-10-17T16:35:47+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-11-22T01:48:32+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2000,"height":1150,"url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Michael Liu","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@uscdornsife","twitter_site":"@uscdornsife","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/"},"author":{"name":"Michael Liu","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/d03084ed5319ed7575c96017879a7447"},"headline":"Louise Gl\u00fcck honed her poetic voice across a lifetime to speak to us from beyond the grave","datePublished":"2023-10-17T16:35:47+00:00","dateModified":"2023-11-22T01:48:32+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/"},"wordCount":18,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top.jpg","keywords":["expert viewpoint","literature","nobel prize","poetry","the conversation"],"articleSection":["Arts and Culture"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/","name":"Poet and Nobel laureate Louise Gl\u00fcck","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top.jpg","datePublished":"2023-10-17T16:35:47+00:00","dateModified":"2023-11-22T01:48:32+00:00","description":"Celebrated poet and Nobel laureate Louise Gl\u00fcck wrote about mortality, broken families and human frailty with wryness and quiet beauty.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/10\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice-top.jpg","width":2000,"height":1150},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/louise-gluck-poetic-voice\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Louise Gl\u00fcck honed her poetic voice across a lifetime to speak to us from beyond the grave"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/","name":"USC Dornsife News","description":"USC Dornsife news and events","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#organization","name":"USC Dornsife News","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/01\/USC-Dornsife-Cardinal-Black-on-White-RGB.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/01\/USC-Dornsife-Cardinal-Black-on-White-RGB.jpg","width":1000,"height":330,"caption":"USC Dornsife News"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uscdornsife","https:\/\/x.com\/uscdornsife","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/uscdornsife\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/USCCollege","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/school\/uscdornsife"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/d03084ed5319ed7575c96017879a7447","name":"Michael Liu","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/16962c8d3900280cb2e47f931ab45f9c2432ea07c167e9c00a6c2f8a0ec3d61f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/16962c8d3900280cb2e47f931ab45f9c2432ea07c167e9c00a6c2f8a0ec3d61f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Michael Liu"},"url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/author\/liumk\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17164","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17164"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17164\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17616,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17164\/revisions\/17616"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17164"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17164"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17164"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}