Muriel Rukeyser

About

American poet and activist whose literary works include The Book of the Dead and To be a Jew in the Twentieth Century. Her debut poetic work, Theory of Flight, was published as part of the prestigious Yale Younger Poets Series.

Before Fame

Her work took on a political bent from the time that she wrote, at age twenty-one, about the famous Scottsboro Case in Alabama.

Trivia

Her poetry collection The Book of the Dead was based on her investigation of the West Virginia Hawk's Nest Incident. This controversial event involved the deaths of numerous miners from silicosis.

Family Life

Her family sent her to a private school in New York. Later, she attended Vassar College and Columbia University.

Associated With

She translated selected works by author Octavio Paz.