He spent four years of his childhood on the Canadian prairies, but otherwise remained on the west coast until 1963, where he got his bachelor's degree in English and Philosophy at the University of British Columbia. Geddes received his M.A. and Ph.D. in English at the University of Toronto. He taught English and Creative Writing at Concordia University for twenty years (1978–1998). Then he returned to the west coast, where he was appointed Distinguished Professor of Canadian Culture at Western Washington University (1998–2001). He has also taught English at the British Columbia Institute of Technology and the University of Victoria, as well as serving as a writer-in-residence at Green College (UBC) and the Vancouver Public Library. In 2007 he received an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Royal Roads University.
Geddes has written and edited over thirty-five books, including seventeen books of poetry, as well as fiction, non-fiction, drama, translation, criticism and anthologies. His work has been translated into five languages. Before embarking on his literary career, he worked as a gillnet fisherman, loaded boxcars at BC Sugar Refinery, stocked shelves at Woodwards, worked as a fishing guide and drove a water-taxi. Geddes is known as one of Canada's best political poets, having been singled out for this honour by literary critic George Woodcock in the late 1960s, whose claim graced the back cover of many of Geddes' books. Geddes has explored human rights issues in places such as Chile during its dictatorship, in Nicaragua during its civil war, and in Palestine and Israel after the Oslo peace accord. He lives on Thetis Island, British Columbia.
Literature and the Environmentedit
Gary Geddes is most known for being a political and humanist poet, but his writing is also deeply rooted in place. Although he cannot be defined as an environmental writer or nature writer, early books such as Snakeroot (1973) and more recent work such as Sailing Home: A Journey through Time, Place & Memory (2001) are based around a specific place and explore the human relationship with that environment. Geddes's relationship to the environment seems to be strongly nostalgic: Sailing Home is a memoir of his personal search for a place which may no longer exist, or may have changed beyond recognition, and Snakeroot also involves revisiting a landscape which is no longer home.
Geddes approaches the environment with an attitude that ranges from confrontational to appreciative. In the poem "ladder grass" (from Snakeroot) he reveals the appreciative side: "The ladder grass/ at my feet is unique, splendid," and in "snakeroot" he says, "The road to hell is paved." However, these lines co-exist in the book that contains the poem "blood and feathers," which is far more confrontational towards nature, especially in the opening lines "I refuse to be seasonal, stirred/ to a frenzy by a planet’s turning. Let the dead rocks and dying grasses/ speak for themselves, or be dumb." Whether confrontational or appreciative, though, Geddes' responses to the environment seem based in a strong attachment to the places he has lived, and in an undeniable connection between human beings and their surroundings. In 2010 Robert G. May edited a collection of critical studies, Gary Geddes: Essays on His Works (Guernica Editions) which includes contributions by: W. H. New, M. Wynn Thomas, Winnifred M. Bogaards, Shirley McDonald, Lake Sagaris and Robert G. May.
Bibliographyedit
Poetry
Poems (1971)
Rivers Inlet (1972)
Snakeroot (1973)
Letter of the Master of Horse (1973)
War & other measures (1976)
The Acid Test (1980)
The Terracotta Army (1984)
Changes of State (1986)
Hong Kong (1987)
No Easy Exit (1989)
Light of Burning Towers (1990)
Girl by the Water (1994)
The Perfect Cold Warrior (1995)
Active Trading: Selected Poems 1970-1995 (1996)
Flying Blind (1998)
Skaldance (2004)
Falsework (2007)
Swimming Ginger (2010)
What Does A House Want? (2014
The Resumption of Play (2016)
Fiction
The Unsettling of the West (1986)
Non-Fiction
Letters from Managua: Meditations on Politics & Art (1990)
Sailing Home: A Journey through Time, Place & Memory (2001)
Kingdom of Ten Thousand Things: An Impossible Journey from Kabul to Chiapas (2005)
Drink the Bitter Root: A Search for Justice and Healing in Africa (2010, USA 2011)
Medicine Unbundled: A Journey through the Minefields of Indigenous Health Care (2017)
Drama
Les Maudits Anglais (1984)
Translation
I Didn't Notice the Mountain Growing Dark (1986), poems of Li Bai and Du Fu, translated with the assistance of George Liang
Criticism
Conrad's Later Novels (1980)
Out of the Ordinary: Politics, Poetry & Narrative (2009)
15 Canadian Poets Times 3 (1971, 1977, 1988, 2001)
Skookum Wawa: Writings of the Canadian Northwest (1975)
Divided We Stand (1977)
The Inner Ear (1983)
Chinada: Memoirs of the Gang of Seven (1983)
Vancouver: Soul of A City (1986)
Compañeros: Writings about Latin America (1990)
The Art of Short Fiction: An International Anthology (1992; brief edition, 2000)
Awardsedit
E.J. Pratt Medal and Prize for Poetry (1970)
National Poetry Prize, for The Acid Test (1981)
Canadian Authors Association Literary Award, poetry (1982)
Commonwealth Poetry Competition (Americas Region), for The Terracotta Army (1985)
Writers' Choice Award (1988)
National Magazine Gold Award, for Hong Kong (1987)
Archibald Lampman Award (1990 and 1996)
Arvon International Poetry Competition, short list (1993)
Poetry Book Society Recommendation, UK, for Active Trading (1996)
Gabriela Mistral Prize from the Government of Chile (1996)
Royal Roads honours a humanitarian poet..., Royal Roads University, he was awarded an honorary doctorate of laws for his lifetime of human-rights work and for advancing literature in Canada, 2007
^"Gary Geddes wins 2018 Freedom to Read Award, for his work in support of freedom of expression | CBC Books". CBC News. 2018-02-26. from the original on 2022-05-22.
External linksedit
Canadian Poetry Online: Gary Geddes - Biography and 5 poems (Jimmy's Place, P.O.W., Sandra Lee Scheuer, Sullivan, The Last Canto)
Gary Geddes entry in The Canadian Encyclopedia
Geddes at English-Canadian writers, Athabasca University, with further links, 2015
gary, geddes, this, biography, living, person, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, adding, reliable, sources, contentious, material, about, living, persons, that, unsourced, poorly, sourced, must, removed, immediately, from, article, talk. This biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification Please help by adding reliable sources Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately from the article and its talk page especially if potentially libelous Find sources Gary Geddes news newspapers books scholar JSTOR June 2021 Learn how and when to remove this message Gary Geddes born June 9 1940 in Vancouver British Columbia is a Canadian poet and writer Gary GeddesBorn 1940 06 09 June 9 1940 age 83 Vancouver British Columbia CanadaOccupationPoet writerNationalityCanadianEducationUniversity of British ColumbiaUniversity of Toronto MA PhD Contents 1 Biography 2 Literature and the Environment 3 Bibliography 4 Awards 5 References 6 External linksBiography editHe spent four years of his childhood on the Canadian prairies but otherwise remained on the west coast until 1963 where he got his bachelor s degree in English and Philosophy at the University of British Columbia Geddes received his M A and Ph D in English at the University of Toronto He taught English and Creative Writing at Concordia University for twenty years 1978 1998 Then he returned to the west coast where he was appointed Distinguished Professor of Canadian Culture at Western Washington University 1998 2001 He has also taught English at the British Columbia Institute of Technology and the University of Victoria as well as serving as a writer in residence at Green College UBC and the Vancouver Public Library In 2007 he received an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Royal Roads University Geddes has written and edited over thirty five books including seventeen books of poetry as well as fiction non fiction drama translation criticism and anthologies His work has been translated into five languages Before embarking on his literary career he worked as a gillnet fisherman loaded boxcars at BC Sugar Refinery stocked shelves at Woodwards worked as a fishing guide and drove a water taxi Geddes is known as one of Canada s best political poets having been singled out for this honour by literary critic George Woodcock in the late 1960s whose claim graced the back cover of many of Geddes books Geddes has explored human rights issues in places such as Chile during its dictatorship in Nicaragua during its civil war and in Palestine and Israel after the Oslo peace accord He lives on Thetis Island British Columbia Literature and the Environment editGary Geddes is most known for being a political and humanist poet but his writing is also deeply rooted in place Although he cannot be defined as an environmental writer or nature writer early books such as Snakeroot 1973 and more recent work such as Sailing Home A Journey through Time Place amp Memory 2001 are based around a specific place and explore the human relationship with that environment Geddes s relationship to the environment seems to be strongly nostalgic Sailing Home is a memoir of his personal search for a place which may no longer exist or may have changed beyond recognition and Snakeroot also involves revisiting a landscape which is no longer home Geddes approaches the environment with an attitude that ranges from confrontational to appreciative In the poem ladder grass from Snakeroot he reveals the appreciative side The ladder grass at my feet is unique splendid and in snakeroot he says The road to hell is paved However these lines co exist in the book that contains the poem blood and feathers which is far more confrontational towards nature especially in the opening lines I refuse to be seasonal stirred to a frenzy by a planet s turning Let the dead rocks and dying grasses speak for themselves or be dumb Whether confrontational or appreciative though Geddes responses to the environment seem based in a strong attachment to the places he has lived and in an undeniable connection between human beings and their surroundings In 2010 Robert G May edited a collection of critical studies Gary Geddes Essays on His Works Guernica Editions which includes contributions by W H New M Wynn Thomas Winnifred M Bogaards Shirley McDonald Lake Sagaris and Robert G May Bibliography editPoetry Poems 1971 Rivers Inlet 1972 Snakeroot 1973 Letter of the Master of Horse 1973 War amp other measures 1976 The Acid Test 1980 The Terracotta Army 1984 Changes of State 1986 Hong Kong 1987 No Easy Exit 1989 Light of Burning Towers 1990 Girl by the Water 1994 The Perfect Cold Warrior 1995 Active Trading Selected Poems 1970 1995 1996 Flying Blind 1998 Skaldance 2004 Falsework 2007 Swimming Ginger 2010 What Does A House Want 2014 The Resumption of Play 2016 Fiction The Unsettling of the West 1986 Non Fiction Letters from Managua Meditations on Politics amp Art 1990 Sailing Home A Journey through Time Place amp Memory 2001 Kingdom of Ten Thousand Things An Impossible Journey from Kabul to Chiapas 2005 Drink the Bitter Root A Search for Justice and Healing in Africa 2010 USA 2011 Medicine Unbundled A Journey through the Minefields of Indigenous Health Care 2017 Drama Les Maudits Anglais 1984 Translation I Didn t Notice the Mountain Growing Dark 1986 poems of Li Bai and Du Fu translated with the assistance of George Liang Criticism Conrad s Later Novels 1980 Out of the Ordinary Politics Poetry amp Narrative 2009 Bearing Witness 2016 Anthologies 70 Canadian Poets 2014 20th Century Poetry amp Poetics 1969 1973 1985 1996 2006 15 Canadian Poets Times 3 1971 1977 1988 2001 Skookum Wawa Writings of the Canadian Northwest 1975 Divided We Stand 1977 The Inner Ear 1983 Chinada Memoirs of the Gang of Seven 1983 Vancouver Soul of A City 1986 Companeros Writings about Latin America 1990 The Art of Short Fiction An International Anthology 1992 brief edition 2000 Awards editE J Pratt Medal and Prize for Poetry 1970 National Poetry Prize for The Acid Test 1981 Canadian Authors Association Literary Award poetry 1982 Commonwealth Poetry Competition Americas Region for The Terracotta Army 1985 Writers Choice Award 1988 National Magazine Gold Award for Hong Kong 1987 Archibald Lampman Award 1990 and 1996 Arvon International Poetry Competition short list 1993 Poetry Book Society Recommendation UK for Active Trading 1996 Gabriela Mistral Prize from the Government of Chile 1996 Royal Roads honours a humanitarian poet Royal Roads University he was awarded an honorary doctorate of laws for his lifetime of human rights work and for advancing literature in Canada 2007 Lieutenant Governor s Award for Literary Excellence in British Columbia 2008 1 Malahat Review Long Poem Prize 2016 Freedom to Read Award 2018 in recognition of his body of work that promotes free expression 2 Geddes All Awards and Honours 1970 2010 at University of Toronto LibrariesReferences edit Poet Gary Geddes wins B C Award CBC Arts Gary Geddes wins 2018 Freedom to Read Award for his work in support of freedom of expression CBC Books CBC News 2018 02 26 Archived from the original on 2022 05 22 External links editCanadian Poetry Online Gary Geddes Biography and 5 poems Jimmy s Place P O W Sandra Lee Scheuer Sullivan The Last Canto Gary Geddes entry in The Canadian Encyclopedia Geddes at English Canadian writers Athabasca University with further links 2015 Archives of Gary Geddes Gary Geddes fonds R11739 are held at Library and Archives Canada Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Gary Geddes amp oldid 1222938442, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
