Charles Olson (1910 - 1970)


A selective bibliography of open access articles on Charles Olson, favoring signed articles by recognized scholars, articles published in reviewed sources, and web sites that adhere to the MLA Guidelines for Authors of Web Sites


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Literary criticism

Allen, Donald and Benjamin Friedlander (eds.) In a review of The Collected Prose of Charles Olson John Palattella discusses the challenges of reading Charles Olson, "the first postmodern writer." Boston Review, February/ March 1998 (moved)

Anastas, Peter (ed.), foreword by Gerrit Lansing. Review of Maximus to Gloucester: The Letter and Poems of Charles Olson to the Gloucester Times, 1962 - 1969 A review of an unusual publishing project, the publication of Olson's letters to the Gloucester Daily Times from 1962 until his final letter in 1969 when, embittered and aware of his impending death, he was still trying to encourage people to create their own mythology out of the material at hand. The book is important, says reviewer Karl Young, because "it firmly and irrefutably throws the emphasis of Olson's work back on the local." In American Book Review, August-September, 1993

Bezner, Kevin. "A Location Constantly Reoccurring: Creeley, Olson, and the Genesis of Black Mountain Poetry," Oyster Boy Review, 1999

Creeley, Robert. Preface to Charles Olson: The Allegory of a Poet’s Life. Poet Robert Creeley reflects on the aims he shared with Charles Olson. In Jacket Magazine #12, July 2000

Creeley, Robert (ed.) Review of Charles Olson. Selected Poems (Univ. of California Press, 1993.) A review of Robert Creeley's new selection of Charles Olson's poems notes that the reception of Olson has suffered because of Olson's posture as public moralist. Creeley corrects the picture with a more rounded selection of Olson's poetry. Reviewed by Peter Quartermain in the Durham Univ. Journal (March 1995)

Foley, Jack. "Projective Verse At Fifty." On the decision by the editors of Poems for the Millennium not to anthologize Charles Olson's often-anthologized article "Projective Verse," and whether Olson's theories have fundamentally shaped twentieth century poetics. From flashpointmag.com

Gümüşbaş, Barış. On the interaction between politics, economics, and the poetical in Charles Olson's works, particularly in The Maximus Poems. "Charles Olson's Poetical Economy," in Journal of American Studies of Turkey 5 (1997)

Lawrence, Nick. "Olson's Republic" Essay on the political in Charles Olson, by poet Nick Lawrence

McClure, Michael. Poet Michael McClure discusses Projective Verse in an interview with Jack Foley, in The Alsop Review, no date. Another interviw


Introductory, overview

An introduction to Charles Olson which includes reliable articles on Olson's life and poetry; On "Variations Done for Gerald Van De Wiele"; On "Cole's Island"; On Charles Olson--by Robert Creeley; and Olson Book Jackets. From Modern American Poetry (Univ. of Ill.)

Suggestions for ways of teaching Charles Olson's difficult poetry, from Heath guides

A brief article on the importance of letters for Charles Olson, from Univ. of Calif. Press

A newsletter article describes a 1995 tribute to Charles Olson in Gloucester, Mass. Panel members Robert Creeley, Vincent Ferrini, Hettie Jones, Jean Kaiser, Ingeborg Lauterstein, and Edward Sanders offered recollections. By Loss Pequeño Glazier, Poetry Project Newsletter

An introduction to experimental poet Charles Olson which includes links to other major poets from Black Mountain College, from the Academy of American Poets (moved)


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1998-2008 by Donna Jan Pridmore