Robert Norwood
Robert Norwood was a Canadian poet born on March 27, 1874, in New Ross, Nova Scotia. He was the son of Reverend Joseph W. Norwood and Edith Norwood, and pursued his education at several institutions, including Coaticook Academy and King's College in Nova Scotia, where he honed his poetic skills under the guidance of Charles G. D. Roberts. Norwood published a student chapbook titled *Driftwood* in 1898 and graduated with a degree in arts in 1897, shortly before being ordained as a deacon. His ecclesiastical career took him through various parishes in Canada and the United States, culminating in his role as the rector of St. Bartholomew's Church in New York City from 1925 until his death in 1932.
Norwood's notable poetry collections include *His Lady of the Sonnets* (1915), *The Piper and the Reed* (1917), and *Mother and Son* (1925). His works are characterized by a blend of romantic and modernist elements, reflecting a transition in Canadian literature from the nineteenth to the twentieth century. Though much of his poetry is not widely recognized today, it is distinguished by its exploration of themes such as love, faith, and the human experience. Norwood's writings sought to integrate his religious beliefs with a contemporary humanistic perspective, offering a unique contribution to the literary landscape of his time.
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Robert Norwood
- Born: March 27, 1874
- Birthplace: New Ross, Nova Scotia, Canada
- Died: September 28, 1932
- Place of death: New York, New York
Biography
Canadian poet Robert Norwood was born in the village of New Ross, Nova Scotia, on March 27, 1874, the son of Reverend Joseph W. Norwood and Edith Norwood. He attended Coaticook Academy and Bishop’s College in Quebec, and then went to King’s College in Nova Scotia, where his blossoming poetic talents were nurtured under the tutelage of Charles G. D. Roberts, a professor of English literature. Norwood and his roommate, Charles Vernon, published a student chapbook of verses, Driftwood (1898).
Norwood graduated with a degree in arts in 1897. In December, 1897, he was ordained a deacon in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and he became a priest the following year. He was highly regarded by the parishioners in Halifax, and he later served in larger parishes in Quebec, Ontario, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Norwood became an American citizen in 1917. From 1925 until his death in 1932, he served as the sixth rector of New York City’s St. Bartholomew’s Church.
His collection of poetry, His Lady of the Sonnets, was published in 1915, the first volume in his ambitious project to produce annual books of verse as texts for the message of his ministry. He is also the author of the poetry collections The Piper and the Reed (1917), The Modernists (1918), and Mother and Son (1925), among other poetic works. Since their publication, much of Norwood’s poetry has been forgotten. While his lyrics and blank verse are ordinary, Norwood’s experiments with the sequential long poem and narrative verse stray from the conventionality of his time, as evidenced in His Lady of the Sonnets, which proposes a rule of ethical conduct based on physical love. The Piper and the Reed expands on the theme of love as modern man’s answer to a lack of confidence in traditional methods of achieving certainty in salvation.
Norwood’s poetry demonstrates Canada’s literary bridge from nineteenth century romanticism to twentieth century modernism, which can be seen Norwood’s work Issa: A Poem (1931), which carries both romantic elements of piety and more modern elements of syncretism and the economy of thematic architecture. While not highly regarded today, Norwood’s poetry is most notable for its ability to express the devout religion inherent in his own and in Canada’s past and fuse it with his particular form of humanism for the modern age.