Simon Armitage Born in 1963 Lives in West

Simon Armitage • Born in 1963 • Lives in West Yorkshire, England • Has published ten (10) volumes of poetry, including The Shout which was published in the United States in 2005. His first piece of poetry was published in 1989. • He has published two novels and authored four stage plays. Information taken from http: //www. simonarmitage. com/

• Currently he is a senior lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University and is an Artist in Residence at London’s South Bank through 2012. • For his commitment and achievements in literature he has been awarded Honorary Doctorates by the University of Portsmouth, the University of Huddersfield, and by Sheffield Hallam University. In 2004 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

Favorite Quote "It’s never going to be very mainstream. One reason is that poetry requires concentration, both on the part of the writer and the reader. But it’s kind of unkillable, poetry. It’s our most ancient artform and I think it’s more relevant today than ever, because it’s one person saying what they really believe. “ --Simon Armitage

Did You Know? 1. As reported on booktrade. info, Armitage has won the Keats-Shelley Poetry Prize for 2010. 2. Recipient of a BAFTA – the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. 3. Lead singer of the band The Scaremongers. 4. Before he started writing, he was a probation officer for six years. 5. In 2010, he walked 264 miles from Scotland to England, stopping to give poetry readings in exchange for food or accommodations. He is writing a book about his experience.

Contemporary Observations about contemporary poetry • To be classified as a contemporary poet, your poetry must be written after WWII. • Contemporary poetry is written in language that is accessible to the common reader. • Contemporary poetry is most often written in free verse (unrhymed lines). The lines follow the natural rhythms of the language and not the strict five stresses per line in iambic pentameter.

Contemporary • Contemporary poetry is suggests ideas rather grounded in the image. than overtly stating • Contemporary poetry ideas. invites the reader to • Contemporary poetry is complete statements, brief in comparison to offer conclusions, and traditional poetry. extract meaning.

Style • Armitage’s style can be described in four (4) words: Modern Accessible Unstuffy Robust Information taken from http: //www. bbc. co. uk/poetryseason/poets/simon_armitage. shtml and https: //www. poets. org/poet. php/prm. PID/1309

Technique Armitage uses: Slang Wit Jargon Vernacular of his native Northern England Then combines all of this with an easy sophistication and experience to produce poems of originality, creativity, and elegance Information taken from http: //www. bbc. co. uk/poetryseason/poets/simon_armitage. shtml and https: //www. poets. org/poet. php/prm. PID/1309

“You’re Beautiful” • You’re Beautiful because you’re classically trained. , I’m ugly because I associate piano wire with strangulation. You’re beautiful because you stop to read the cards in newsagents’ windows about lost cats and missing dogs. I’m ugly because of what 1 did to that jellyfish with a lolly-stick and a big stone You’re beautiful because for you, politeness is instinctive, not a marketing campaign I’m ugly because desperation is impossible to hide. • Ugly like he is, Beautiful like hers, Beautiful like Venus, Ugly like his, Beautiful like she is, Ugly like Mars.

What can you find? (specific) Ugly like he is, Beautiful like hers, Beautiful like Venus, Ugly like his, Beautiful like she is, Ugly like Mars. --Sestet: 6 line stanza --Simile: a figure of speech comparing two objects, usually with a “like, ” “as, ” or “than. ” --Meter: Repetition of a regular rhythmic unit in a line of poetry

What can you find? (GENERAL) --Free verse: Poetry not written in a traditional meter but is still rhythmical. --Imagery: What images does this bring to mind? --Lyric: Poem that represents a speaker who expresses thoughts and feelings. Love lyrics are common.

What does it mean? • Armitage disputes the idea that beauty requires hair, makeup, clothing. Here he shares that his idea of beauty is of someone who has a good heart, someone who is open minded, and lives a good life. http: //agirldrunkonwords. blogspot. com/2009/08/youre-beautiful-simon-armitage. html