Pulitzer Prize Poetry Winner
Things of This World
by Richard Wilbur
Summary
These poems delight in the visible world, finding grace and metaphysical wit in laundry on a line, fountains, and ordinary weather. Wilbur writes in supple traditional forms, his rhymed stanzas balancing elegance with a quiet sense of moral and spiritual stakes. The collection makes a case for affirmation and craft at a moment when confessional disclosure was rising.
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Historical Context & Significance
Wilbur was a masterclass in the use of traditional meter and rhyme, despite criticisms from the avant-garde.