Cynthia Macdonald
Cynthia Lee Macdonald (February 2, 1928 – August 3, 2015) was an American poet, educator, and psychoanalyst.[1]
![](../I/CM1.jpg.webp)
Life
Macdonald was born in Manhattan to screenwriter Leonard Macdonald and his wife Dorothy Kiam Macdonald.[2]
She earned a B.A. in English from Bennington College in 1950 and pursued studies in voice at the Mannes School of Music in 1951-1952.[3] She pursued a career in opera and concert singing from 1953-1966.[4] After changing her focus to poetry, Macdonald received a master's degree in writing and literature from Sarah Lawrence College.[5]
She went on to teach creative writing at Sarah Lawrence University and Johns Hopkins University.[6] She co-founded the Creative Writing Program at the University of Houston with fellow poet Stanley Plumly in 1979. She was a member of the English Department at the University of Houston until her retirement in 2004,[7] receiving the Esther Farfel Award for faculty excellence.
Macdonald also worked as a psychoanalyst, having received a certification from the Houston-Galveston Psychoanalytic Institute in 1986. She specialized in working with people who had writer's block.[8]
She was a member of the board of directors of the Association of Writers & Writing Programs.[9]
She wrote the libretto for The Rehearsal (1978), an opera by Thomas Benjamin.
She was the mother of American artist Jennifer Macdonald.
Awards
- Three NEA grants (two for poetry and one for a libretto) [10][11]
- Guggenheim Fellowship [12]
- National Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters award "for "recognition of the contribution of her poetry", 1977[13]
- O. B. Hardison, Jr. Poetry Prize[14]
Works
- "Discomfiting the Absolute Splendor", Poetry Foundation
- "The Impossible May Be Possible", Ploughshares (Spring 1999)
Books
- Macdonald, Cynthia (June 1972). Amputations: Poems. George Braziller. ISBN 0-8076-0656-1.
- Macdonald, Cynthia (April 1977). Transplants: Poems. George Braziller. ISBN 0-8076-0810-6.
- Macdonald, Cynthia (1980-01-01). (W)Holes. NY: Alfred A. Knopf Incorporated. ISBN 0-394-50852-1.
- Macdonald, Cynthia (1985-09-12). Alternate Means of Transport. Knopf. ISBN 0-394-72968-4.
- Macdonald, Cynthia (1992-11-03). Living Wills: New and Selected Poems. Knopf. ISBN 0-679-74278-6.
- Macdonald, Cynthia (1997-01-01). I Can't Remember. Alfred a Knopf Inc. ISBN 0679454578.
References
- "Cynthia MacDonald - Obituary - New York, NY". New York Times. August 16, 2015. Retrieved December 2, 2015.
- Grimes, William (2015-08-24). "Cynthia Macdonald, Poet Known for Humor and Ability to Shock, Dies at 87". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-03-07.
- "Macdonald, Cynthia 1928- - Dictionary definition of Macdonald, Cynthia 1928- | Encyclopedia.com: FREE online dictionary". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2017-03-07.
- "Macdonald, Cynthia 1928- - Dictionary definition of Macdonald, Cynthia 1928- | Encyclopedia.com: FREE online dictionary". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2017-03-07.
- Grimes, William (2015-08-24). "Cynthia Macdonald, Poet Known for Humor and Ability to Shock, Dies at 87". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-03-07.
- Grimes, William. "Cynthia Macdonald, Poet Known for Humor and Ability to Shock, Dies at 87". nytimes.com. New York Times. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
- Grimes, William. "Cynthia Macdonald, Poet Known for Humor and Ability to Shock, Dies at 87". nytimes.com. New York Times. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
- Grimes, William. "Cynthia Macdonald, Poet Known for Humor and Ability to Shock, Dies at 87". nytimes.com. New York Times. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
- "Cynthia MacDonald -- 3rd Annual Literary Festival -- Old Dominion University -- Sept 29-30; Oct 1-2, 1980". odu.edu.
- http://www3.wooster.edu/ArtfulDodge/interviews/macdonald.htm Archived May 30, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-11-19. Retrieved 2009-11-19.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Nothing at website for "Cynthia MacDonald" per search there. Archived July 10, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
- http://www.gf.org/fellows/9167-cynthia-macdonald org Archived June 3, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
- "Macdonald, Cynthia 1928- - Dictionary definition of Macdonald, Cynthia 1928- | Encyclopedia.com: FREE online dictionary". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2017-03-07.
- http://www.folger.edu/template.cfm?cid=968 Archived May 27, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
External links
- Daniel Bourne (March 30, 1990). "A Conversation With Cynthia Macdonald". Artful Dodge. Archived from the original on September 27, 2008.
- "Cynthia Macdonald." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2009. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 18 Nov. 2009