Lucille Clifton
by Sarah Brooks
Originally Thelma Lucille
Sayles later Lucille Clifton was born June 27, 1936, in Depew, New York
although she moved to Buffalo, New York with her family early on in her
life. Clifton showed her intelligence even at an early age and graduated
high school at only sixteen. She then went on to win a scholarship to Howard
University in Washington D.C. although she transferred to Fredonia State
Teachers College. During Clifton's college experience she met some of the
people that influenced her life, and writing the most. At Howard Clifton was
exposed to the dramatist and poet Amiri Bakara, also know as LeRoi Jones and
another poet, Sterling Brown. Its when Clifton was attending Fredonia State
Teachers College that she was experimenting and exploring poetry, drama, and
other various things that went on to shape her writing. Also at Fredonia
Clifton met her future husband Fred Clifton who at the time held a position
as a philosophy professor at the University of Buffalo. Clifton had six
children to Fred. The couple was happily married until 1984 when Fred passed
away. While Clifton was attending Fredonia she had her big break when Robert
Hayden another (better known at the time) African American artist found her
works worthy of the YW-YMCA Poetry Center Discovery Award. Not only was this
an honor but it lead to Clifton’s publication of her first poetry
collection, Good Times (1969). Luckily Clifton's début into the
literary scene was a major success. Good Times was claimed to be one of the
best books of the year by the New York Times. After this major
breakthrough Clifton went on to use the teaching skills she had learned at
Fredonia and held positions at Coppin State College in Baltimore, Maryland,
from 1974 to 1979, professor of literature and creative writing at the
University of California, Santa Cruz, from 1985 to 1989, Distinguished
Professor of Literature and Distinguished Professor of Humanities at St.
Mary's College, Maryland, from 1989 to 1991, and professor of creative
writing at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, beginning in 1998, Not
to mention she served as the Poet Laureate of the state of Maryland from
1979 to 1985. Clifton is one of the most accomplished women in the literary
world. Owner of Pulitzer Prize nominations for poetry in 1980, 1987, and
1991, the Lannan Literary Award for poetry in 1997, the Lenore Marshall
Poetry Prize in 1997, the Los Angeles Times Poetry Award in 1997, the
Lila Wallace/Reader's Digest Award in 1999, and the National Book
Award for Blessing the Boats: New and Selected Poems, 1988-2000
(2000) also a National Book Award nomination for The Terrible Stories
(1996). NO only that but she has been awarded honorary degrees from Colby
College, the University of Maryland, Towson State University, Washington
College, and Albright College. Lucille Clifton’s work shows true passion for
the things of everyday and she was rightfully recognized for her talents.
Published works from Clifton:
Poetry
- Good Times, 1969
- Good News About the Earth, 1972
- An Ordinary Woman,1974
- Next, 1987
Prose
- Generations: A Memoir, 1987
Poetry and Prose
- Good Woman: Poems and a Memoir 1969-1980, 1987