'Poems help me wrestle with my fears': Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Tracy K. Smith

'Poems help me wrestle with my fears': Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Tracy K. Smith Culture

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09:26

Issued on: 21/04/2026 - 14:33Modified: 21/04/2026 - 14:36

09:26 min Share From the show Reading time 1 min

A former US Poet Laureate has told FRANCE 24 how we should stop making poems feel like puzzles, and instead embrace them as a way to help us in our perilous times. Tracy K. Smith is now a Harvard professor and the author of five poetry collections, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning "Life on Mars". Her book "Fear Less: Poetry in Perilous Times", is being discussed here in Paris this Tuesday. She spoke to us in Perspective.

By: Stuart Norval Advertising Related keywords

• culture
• poetry
• Literature