THE POET WHO DID NOT SEEK FAME

I posted a poem by Philip Larkin earlier. I do not remember exactly when I became aware of him and his poetry but he lived latterly in the city of Hull, which is just over the river from us. The poem that first got my attention had the words in it

:they fuck you up your mum and dad”

And that really took my attention, and I thought that if a poet could write such words he was worth reading. I loved that poem and could relate to it so well.

Philip Larkin did not seek fame at all and in fact liked to keep a low profile almost to the point of being secretive. He wrote about the situations that affect people in life rawly and honestly. To me, he was a brilliant poet. What also impressed me about him though was that he truly did not seek fame and recognition. He speant his life working as a librarian in various University libraries. Hull was the last one he worked in and he lived in Hull for a good many years. There is a statue of him in Hull and he is now greatly acclaimed in that city.