Dennis O'Driscoll in Poetry Magazine

A very interesting article by Irish poet, editor and public servant, Dennis O'Driscoll, in this month's Poetry. In it he talks about his career with the Irish Revenue Commissioners, the status of poets and poetry in Ireland and the tax exemption scheme for artists (including a swipe at Bono).

He claims that he has always regarded himself as a civil servant rather than “poet” or “artist” and that he would find it embarrassing to ascribe either title to himself. He quotes poet Douglas Dunn: “If someone on a train asked me what I did for a living, I’d say I was a tax-inspector, rather than a poet.”
Read (and comment on if you wish) the full article here.

The rest of the magazine concentrates on longer poetry, including excerpts from Ilya Kaminsky's “Deaf Republic” and Hanoch Levin's “Lives of the Dead.” It also has a selection of poetry from recently deceased Danish poet, Inger Christensen.