To attend via Zoom, please register in advance for this meeting here.
No registration required for in-person attendance
Poetry packets are available at the library or online here: Bob Dylan Lyrics – May 2023 Poetry Salon.
On Thursday, May 11, the Poetry Salon convenes at Abbot Public Library to discuss the lyrics of singer/songwriter Bob Dylan and his winning the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2016. He was awarded the prize “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.”
When Robert Zimmerman began his career, he took his name from the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. Clearly he felt a connection to the poet, perhaps setting a goal for himself. Even so, he was inspired when young by potent American vernacular music, songs by performers like Woody Guthrie, Hank Williams and Robert Johnson. When his voice became fully his own, in his work of the mid-to-late 1960s that led up to what is probably his greatest song, “Like a Rolling Stone,” no one had ever heard pop songs with so many oracular, tumbling words in them. When Dylan received the Nobel Prize, he said in his acceptance essay, “I got to wondering how exactly my songs related to literature.” This Salon will explore that relationship.
Please join Claire Keyes, Professor Emerita at Salem State University, as we discuss Bob Dylan’s song lyrics on May 11. The Salon will run from 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm at Abbot Public Library, or you may attend via Zoom. To attend via Zoom, please register in advance for this meeting here. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
This program is sponsored by the Friends of Abbot Public Library.