About Bliss Carman
William Bliss Carman, (April 15, 1861 – June 8, 1929), was a Canadian poet, essayist, journalist, and literary editor. He completed his education at Fredericton Collegiate School before moving on to the University of New Brunswick, where he received his B.A. in 1881. As is often the case with many writers, his first published work appeared in the University magazine, and for Carman, this was in 1879. After his studies, he moved to the United States, where he worked as a writer and editor-in-chief for various magazines and journals in New York, Chicago, and Boston: such as The Atlantic, Cosmopolitan, Current Literature, The Independent, The Literary World, and The Outlook.After several years spent editing these magazines and periodicals, Carman published his first poetry collection, “Low Tide on Grand Pré” in 1893. There was no Canadian publisher willing to take it on, and when an American publisher finally did, they went bankrupt. The following year turned out to be much better. His partnership with the American poet Richard Hovey resulted in the creation of “Songs of Vagabondia”, which was an immediate success. This success led the Boston firm, Stone & Kimball, to reissue “Low Tide on Grand Pré” and to appoint Carman as the editor of their literary journal, The Chapbook. In 1895, Carman published “Behind the Arras”, a somewhat more serious and philosophical work that centers around a long meditation, using the speaker’s house and its many rooms as a symbol of life and the choices that need to be made.
Carman wrote numerous collections in which he celebrated nature and the joy of life; some of his poems recall events in the history of the Acadian people. In addition to, “Low Tide on Grand Pré” (1893), “Songs from Vagabondia” (1894), his most notable works include “Ballads of Lost Haven” (1897), and also the significant “World's Best Poetry anthology”: A ten volume, topically arranged collection of poetry in which each volume is devoted to a specific topic, from love and home life to tragedy and humor; each volume includes biographical information about the poets and complete author, title, and first line indexes.
Bliss Carman was a prominent member of the Confederation School of Canadian Poetry, and was also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 1925. Furthermore, he received the Lorne Pierce Medal in 1928 and the Gold Medal for Distinguished Achievement (which became later the Robert Frost Medal) delivered by the Poetry Society of America.
During his Bohemian life, Carman traveled extensively and often wrote poems about the countries he visited, such as Italy and India. Carman died on June 8, 1929, in New Canaan, Connecticut. He is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery in Fredericton.
Browse all poems and texts published on Bliss Carman
Set me a task in which I can put something of my very self, and it is a task no longer; it is joy; it is art.
