U.S. poet laureate visits Pitt

It wasn’t just a poetry reading; it was a discussion on racial identity.

Natasha Trethewey,…It wasn’t just a poetry reading; it was a discussion on racial identity.

Natasha Trethewey, the current U.S. Poet laureate, spoke to a full auditorium Monday night in the Frick Fine Arts Building as part of the Pittsburgh Contemporary Writers Series. During her 45-minute reading, the poet read several of her works exploring various ideas scattered throughout history.

After introducing herself to the audience, Trethewey quickly moved into her readings. But first, she made a brief statement about her latest book, “Thrall.”

“‘Thrall’ is very much a book about knowledge … but it’s a history of ideas,” Trethewey said. “I try to make sense of our shared history.”

Throughout the night, she read poetry about mixed races and other historical ideas.

Trethewey was born in Gulfport, Miss., in 1966 to a black mother and a white father. Many of the poems she read during the night touched on the theme of racial identity. “Miracle of the Black Leg” was one.

The poem is based on a “myth of the miraculous transplant … involving a black donor and a white recipient,” the poet said. The concept comes from a traditional tale that originated in the 12th century, and it’s been displayed through pictures in Spain, Germany, Belgium, Portugal and other countries. Trethewey’s poem was an amalgamation of these images, as well as an analysis.

“See how the story changes: In one painting, the Ethiop is merely a body, featureless in a coffin, so black he has no face,” Trethewey read. “In another, the patient, at the top of the frame, seems to writhe in pain, the black leg grafted to his thigh.”

One attendee, Julian Day-Cooney, a senior writing, philosophy and neuroscience major, said “Miracle of the Black Leg” was his favorite piece of the night. Day-Cooney said he was most familiar with one of Trethewey’s older books, “Native Guard,” and that he thought she had “incredible energy.”

“She takes dry, old photographs and paintings and brings them new life,” Day-Cooney said. “I was hanging on every word.”

This use of imagery also grabbed the attention of other members in the audience. Hannah Aizenman, an English and art history major who graduated in April and a poet herself, called Trethewey’s work imagistic and cultural.

“I think her work is important for an American culture that is very much rooted in its history,” Aizenman said. “I think she has a really keen way of attaching image to history.”

Joel W. Coggins, a production assistant at the University of Pittsburgh Press, a University publisher, said he finds it “amazing” how Trethewey “tackles racial identity and biracial identity.” He said that her works are just part of a larger conversation about these seemingly timeless issues.

“The notion of living in a post-racial culture is a silly one,” Coggins said. “There needs to be dialogue, and that’s what I think this book — and her work in general — can facilitate.”

Earlier in the night, Toi Derricotte, the author of “The Undertaker’s Daughter” and a faculty member in the English department at Pitt, introduced the keynote speaker. Before allowing Trethewey to take the stage, Derricotte spoke about the speaker’s dedication to giving a voice to the voiceless.

“Natasha’s poetry has constantly spoken with extraordinary compassion for those whose stories have been hidden, unknown and unsung,” Derricotte said.