‘Teaching Poetry is Like Having a Liquor Store on a Busy Corner’: An Interview with Robert Pinsky

Abstract

Three-time Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky is one of the US’ most important contemporary poets. In this interview, he talks about his formation as a poet and the status of poetry in contemporary culture. He also shares his views on the place of poetry in education, and on how teachers can play a vital role in engaging young people with the genre. Besides discussing the significance of the projects he devised as poet laureate, he uses his knowledge and experience as a poet and educator to explain how young people’s engagement with the reading and writing of poetry can best be enhanced.