Mark Strand

Mark Strand (1934 – 2014) was one of the most popular (Canadian-)American poets of his generation. He was professor of Poetry at Johns Hopkins, and taught English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University from 2005 until his death on November 29, 2014. He served as the 1990 U.S. Poet Laureate, and won the Wallace Stevens award in 2004. In 1999, he won the Pulitzer Prize for his famous collection Blizzard of One.

Highly influenced by surreal artists such as Magritte and Chirico, Strand was known for creating surreal images and nostalgia in his poems using nature.

“Courtship” is a prime example of the darkly comic, often startling poetry that he crafted throughout his career.