Abstract
The art of losing isn't hard to master, Bishop said, and Rich's response to the line cuts two ways. On the one hand, she admires Bishop's artistry, feeling that she herself has not mastered the artonly badly-done exercises. On the other hand, Rich is uncomfortable with Bishop's reticence, preferring the anger of the badly-done to the artistry of a villanelle. Although Bishop has always been championed by male poetsfrom Randall Jarrell and Robert Lowell to John Ashbery and Mark Strand-she has (until recently) presented a difficult example to female poets, especially those of Rich's generation. In an essay on Bishop written around the same time as Contradictions, Rich explained that for a long time she felt drawn, but also repelled by Bishop's poetry. Miss Bishop-that is, Bishop as she was championed by Lowell-was part of the problem.
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