Some know Philip Levine as an author. Others know him as the renowned American poet of the working class. Some are lucky enough to know him as teacher.
The Creative Writing Program and the College of Humanities and Social Sciences know Levine as the focus of the poetry reading they sponsored. The Pulitzer Prize- and National Book Award-winning poet read some of his poetry at a free, public event Thursday night at Caldwell Lounge.
Born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1928, Levine grew up in an industrial atmosphere, living among the lower-middle class.
Growing up, Levine worked at industrial jobs, such as Chevy Gear and Axle, which provided him with inspiration for the majority of his poetry. Working by day, Levine attended Wayne University (now Wayne State University) at night. He received his B.A. in English 1950 and his M.A. in 1955.
Levine left Detroit to teach part-time at the University of Iowa, which gave him the opportunity to attend the Iowa Writer’s Workshop.
The poems he produced and the connections he made in Iowa earned Levine a fellowship in Poetry at Stanford University.
The fellowship led to a job the following year at Fresno State in 1958, where he taught writing and literature for over 30 years.
Now Levine splits his time between California and New York, where he is the distinguished Poet in Residence for the Creative Writing Program at New York University.
But Thursday, Levine was not in New York or California. He was at N.C. State, reading his pieces to people who love his work in Caldwell Lounge.
Dorianne Laux, an English professor, has been acquainted with Levine for some time. Levine wrote the introduction for Laux’s book Awake, published in 1990. Laux, along with the creative writing program and CHASS, brought Levine to stand at the front of a podium in Caldwell.
“I am really excited,” Hamza Benzine said, a senior in political science who is writing a research paper about Levine. “I like his poetry because it is more like a story instead of abstract like a lot of poetry.”
Chairs were arranged in a small, intimate circle around the podium where Levine stood, but the 60 seats set up were not enough to hold the crowd that gathered to listen to Levine.
“I’m pumped out of my mind, Chris Novak said, a sophomore in physics, “Philip is such an inspiration.”
Students squeezed into the couches that usually occupy the lounge, stood in the back, and sat in the floor, waiting to soak up the words Levine read.
Lakisha Brandon, a junior in biology, was familiar with Levine, but really excited. “I just really like poetry,” Brandon said.
The event was free and open to the public, but the majority of people in attendance were students, both undergraduate and graduate students from the creative writing program.
No matter what their age, everyone was excited to be there.
“I’m very excited to be here,” Kim Helms said, a sophomore in chemistry. “I really admire him. His poetry is really easy to grasp.”
Levine himself was very personable, cracking jokes and interacting with the audience. He took time to explain each poem before he read it, providing background about the inspiration for each one.
As he read, the look on his face showed that his mind was slowly drifting from Caldwell back to the time, place or person that inspired him.
“Hearing him read his poetry is so much more intimate that just reading it,” Stuart Sanderson said, a freshman in communication. “He reads the poetry the way it was meant to be when he wrote it, saying the words in the tone he intended for them to be said. It gives everything more meaning. I really enjoy that.”
