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Paul Hoover. Photo by Donnie Seals Jr./Chronicle
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Hoover poetry put into motion
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by Mary Beth Cooper
Staff Writer |
Columbia professor Paul Hoover may make your “L” trip a little more enlightening. Hoover’s poem, “Two Uncertainties,” is currently on display in public transportation systems throughout the country.
The “Poetry in Motion” program was founded 15 years ago. It displays literary snippets in place of ads on public transportation systems.
Hoover is pleased by the opportunity to reach many people with his work.
“It’s nice to be selected. It’s a wonderful form of publicity because if you publish in a book or magazine, it reaches a smaller number and this truly reaches a mass audience,” Hoover said. “If you’re on the “L,” you see it. Instead of an ad, there’s a poem.”
The poem, “Two Uncertainties,” focuses on the millennial. Hoover described it as a break with the past. “There’s a feeling of uncertainty as you end an era,” he said. Hoover said the poem is often noticed by Columbia students.
“I’ve had a large number of students come in and say ‘Are you Paul Hoover who has the poem on the subway?’ ” Hoover said.
Hoover, a full-time tenured faculty member and poet-in-residence, has been a part of Columbia’s faculty since 1974. He currently heads the poetry section of the English Department, which is the country’s only undergraduate program where students can major in poetry.
Hoover’s work isn’t limited to display on mass transportation systems. He is the publisher and editor of New American Writing, a leading literary magazine partially funded by Columbia. He has also published several books, the most recent being “Postmodern American Poetry”, published by W.W. Norton, a leading publisher of literary anthologies. Next time you’re uncertain if you’re riding the correct “L,” look up and think of Paul’s “Two Uncertainties.” |
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