Contributor Biographies
66
Brecht, Samantha
Hailing from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Samantha Brecht is a current senior at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, pursuing a double-major in Zoology and English Literature. As one particularly excited by seemingly odd combinations, she chose not one, but three works by Edmond Waller, as her contribution to this anthology. His obsession with smoothness produced regularity in versification that is both commended and criticized; at worst he has been deemed a failure, and at best a stellar mediocrity; however, Samantha found a perverse pleasure in his ditties, which she would like to share. For instance, the undeniable grotesque humor of “An Epigram on a Painted Lady with ill Teeth,” might tickle the reader’s fancy, also; and within the scope of this collection, the very regularity and ease of his poetry might provide a source of entertainment and contrast with the styles of many of the other writers.
Dewitt, Peter
Samuel Wesley's "Maggots, or Poems on several subjects, never before handled" initially caught Peter Dewitt’s eyes in the first search he did in the library catalog on the special collections' website because of its bizarre title. And it turned out to be a fascinating book, though not available in print. It began with a brief and strange sort of apology to the reader, and seemed to be written in slang (the contraction 'em appears for "them). The poem he chose is bizarre. It starts normally enough, speaking of inspiration and the "muse" and then turns to flies and pigs, with the muse apparently being eaten by the pigs at the end.
Guhl, Kevin
Kevin Guhl is a senior at UW-Madison majoring in English and graduating this upcoming December. He hails from Brookfield, WI. One of the major focuses in choosing Kevin’s poems was to focus primarily on the authors of each of the poems. With each author, he focused primarily on figures in history that were extremely impactful and some of the firsts who focused on their overall ideas. Whether focusing on political issues, women in writing, or overall changing the way people look at English, these authors have impacted the world tremendously and their works should be recognized.
Hardcastle, Emily
Emily Hardcastle is currently a Junior pursuing degrees in English and Chemistry at UW-Madison. She hails from a suburb of Milwaukee in Wisconsin called New Berlin. The poems she has chosen for this collection are not exactly sweet smelling to her. If anything, these poems evoke for her the flowered smells of nostalgia and feelings and thoughts that she can relate to-- involving love, faith, life, and a connection of any or all of these. These poems are the flower smells that most catch her attention and she hopes for you to find some piece of yourself in them too.