The poet James K. Baxter is one of the most important figures in New Zealand's literary history. Born in Dunedin to parents involved with pacifist and socialist activism, Baxter read and wrote prolifically from an early age. He wrote from the age of seven until his death at 46. In 1944, Baxter enrolled at the University of Otago, where he produced his first published poetry collection, Beyond the Palisade. It was at the University of Otago where Baxter developed a fraught relationship with alcohol. The addiction would follow Baxter throughout his life.
Over the course of the 1940s, Baxter produced two more significant works, the 1948 collection Blow, Wind of Fruitfulness and the 1948 poem Hart Crane: A Poem. He worked various jobs during this period after dropping out of the University of Otago. Baxter married influential New Zealand writer Jacquie Sturm in 1948. He enrolled at Wellington Teachers’ College in 1951 and published another collection, The Fallen House, in 1953. Baxter's work in the late 1950s was influenced by Catholicism and critiques of New Zealand society. He is thought to have become disillusioned with society after witnessing extreme poverty in Asia while traveling on a UNESCO stipend in 1958. Baxter also joined Alcoholics Anonymous in this period, leading to his achieving sobriety.
After writing throughout the 1960s and receiving a Robert Burns Fellowship from the University of Otago, in 1969 Baxter left his family behind to establish a commune at the Māori settlement of Hiruharama, or “Jerusalem,” on the Whanganui River. His actions made him a controversial figure to the New Zealand public. Baxter died in Auckland in 1972, leaving behind a massive collection of roughly 2600 poems, in addition to other works. He received international recognition and critical acclaim for his work. His 1944 poem "Convoys" earned the Macmillan Brown prize.
In recent years, Baxter's legacy has been re-evaluated due to the release of a collection of Baxter's letters, which revealed that he committed marital rape.
"Elegy for My Father's Father," which appeared in James K. Baxter's 1966 poetry collection Pig Island Letters, is a poignant and reflective poem that explores the complex relationship between the poet and his paternal grandfather. The speaker...
