Encountering the Ghost of Ted Hughes in His Childhood Home
During my tempestuous teenage years, I was attracted to the work of Sylvia Plath. I voraciously read her poems, as well as The Bell Jar and Paul Alexander’s 2003 biography, Rough Magic. Her work resonated with me unlike any poet I had read
During her turbulent teenage years, the reporter was captivated by Sylvia Plath's work, including her poems, The Bell Jar, and Paul Alexander’s 2003 biography, Rough Magic. Ted Hughes was mentioned as the antagonist in her tragic story, leading the reporter to distance herself from his work after reading of abuse allegations against him.
In 2017, the reporter visited Plath's grave and Lumb Bank, Ted Hughes' former residence, feeling a strong connection to the land and a desire to write there. In 2024, she was offered the opportunity to be poet in residence at Ted's earliest childhood home in Mytholmroyd, where she experienced strange occurrences while staying in the house.
The reporter then began a project to compose poems inspired by Hughes' work and later, her own reading of secondary material. One of her poems, "Your Horses," borrows descriptive details from Hughes' poems while introducing new elements and employing different forms and narratives. The reporter remains puzzled about the identity of the Hughes she is addressing in her poem, as it represents both the mature poet and the young boy she connected with during her stay at the childhood home.
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