Fred Cogswell
Biography
Fred Cogswell - Photo Courtesy of NB Author Portal
Frederick (Fred) William Cogswell was a poet, professor, editor, publisher, and literary critic. Cogswell was born in East Centreville, NB on November 8, 1917. Growing up, Cogswell spent his youth attending a one-room school house across from his family farm. Cogswell continued his schooling, graduating from the Normal School in 1936. After enlisting in the Forestry Corps in 1940, Cogswell was shipped to Scotland. Upon his return to Canada in 1945, he enrolled at the University of New Brunswick. Cogswell gained a BA(Hons) and MA at the University of New Brunswick and received a PhD from Edinburgh University. He later became a professor of English at the University of New Brunswick, a position he held from 1952 to 1983. Upon his retirement, Cogswell was conferred Professor Emeritus status.
Fred Cogswell published 42 books of his own poetry and translation from 1954 to 2004, and acted as publisher for 307 books of other authors through Fiddlehead Books. Cogswell received the Bliss Carman Award for Poetry in 1945 and 1947, and the Alden Nowlan Award for Excellence in Literary Arts in 1995. In 1981, he was honoured with the Order of Canada. Cogswell moved to Vancouver, BC to live with his daughter and family in 2002 and passed away in Vancouver, BC in June 2004.
For a more extensive biography of Cogswell, please visit the New Brunswick Literary Encyclopedia.
Fred Cogswell published 42 books of his own poetry and translation from 1954 to 2004, and acted as publisher for 307 books of other authors through Fiddlehead Books. Cogswell received the Bliss Carman Award for Poetry in 1945 and 1947, and the Alden Nowlan Award for Excellence in Literary Arts in 1995. In 1981, he was honoured with the Order of Canada. Cogswell moved to Vancouver, BC to live with his daughter and family in 2002 and passed away in Vancouver, BC in June 2004.
For a more extensive biography of Cogswell, please visit the New Brunswick Literary Encyclopedia.
Additional Information:
Author's Wikipedia
“The Ballad of John Armstrong”
A Fred Cogswell Tribute (poetry reading)
Author's Wikipedia
“The Ballad of John Armstrong”
A Fred Cogswell Tribute (poetry reading)
Before it takes the air in greener shoots
A seed is nurtured by surrounding soil
And patterned by whatever streams can coil
Where worms and borers worked their slow pursuits;
And though it wills to grow a crown that fruits
In skies where lightnings break and thunders clap,
It can't escape the source that feeds its sap:
No tree belies its soil, outgrows its roots.
Not soft the soil where we took root together;
It grew not giants but the stunted strong,
Toughened by suns and bleak wintry weather
To grow up slow and to endure for long;
We have not gained to any breadth or length,
And all our beauty is our stubborn strength.
Published in The Stunted Strong. Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1954.
Reproduced with permission from Mr. Cogswell's Literary Executor.
A seed is nurtured by surrounding soil
And patterned by whatever streams can coil
Where worms and borers worked their slow pursuits;
And though it wills to grow a crown that fruits
In skies where lightnings break and thunders clap,
It can't escape the source that feeds its sap:
No tree belies its soil, outgrows its roots.
Not soft the soil where we took root together;
It grew not giants but the stunted strong,
Toughened by suns and bleak wintry weather
To grow up slow and to endure for long;
We have not gained to any breadth or length,
And all our beauty is our stubborn strength.
Published in The Stunted Strong. Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1954.
Reproduced with permission from Mr. Cogswell's Literary Executor.
Critical Analysis: Perseverance in Fred Cogswell's "New Brunswick"
Kaitlyn Roeding and Lisa Banks (for ENGL 3403: Canadian Poetry)
Fred Cogswell's sonnet “New Brunswick” concerns the close relationship between the people of New Brunswick and nature. Describing the ways in which they both grow strong and stand alone, this poem illustrates a sense of patriotism for New Brunswick.
Cogswell's speaker first outlines the necessary items for a plant's survival—air, soil, and water—which indicates a larger preoccupation with growth throughout the opening octet. The speaker continues as he laments that there are many things that will try to destroy the small delicate plant, such as “worms and borers” (4), and “lightning[] [which] break[s] and thunders [which] clap” (6). Despite these trials, the plant still succeeds in growing to its full potential, as “it can't escape the source that feeds its sap” (7). The speaker’s continued insistence that “no tree belies its soil, outgrows its roots” (8) underscores Cogswell's focus on the plant's resilience, while also evoking its strength. An extension of this metaphor reveals this nature narrative as an archetypal New Brunswick experience.
Cogswell furthers this metaphor in the second stanza as he describes the relationship between nature and humans. Cogswell’s use of the plural voice as he writes that it is “not soft the soil where we took root together” (9) indicates the insidious ravages of nature both on itself, and on humanity.
The poem’s closing lines further exemplify that despite these ravages, there remains capacity for growth. As Cogswell writes of trees “toughened by suns and bleak wintry weather / to grow up slow and to endure for long” (11-12), he exemplifies the continual ability of both trees and New Brunswickers to flourish despite harsh conditions.
As Cogswell creates an image of a strong New Brunswick pride throughout the sonnet’s lyricism, it is the form which adds to this overall effect. This sonnet, with a strict yet idiosyncratic metre and rhyme scheme—the octet’s ABBA ACCA varies from the standard Petrarchan sonnet, while the DEDE DD of the sestet evokes the Spenserian—reflects how the trees and people of New Brunswick are similarly constrained in their growth, demonstrated by Cogswell’s insistent metre.
As the poem draws to a close, Cogswell suggests that it is the strength born of suffering which creates lasting beauty. He observes that “all our beauty is our stubborn strength” (14), illustrating that regardless of nature’s potential ravaging, an acutely New Brunswick pride pervades, in both its landscape and its people.
Works Cited (for analysis):
Cogswell, Fred. “New Brunswick.” The Stunted Strong. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1954.
Tremblay, Tony. “Frederick William Cogswell.” New Brunswick Literary Encyclopedia. St. Thomas University, 2011. Accessed 7 March 2013.
---. “Fred Cogswell: The Many-Dimensioned Self.” Fredericton: New Brunswick Studies Centre (STU) and Electronic Text Centre (UNB), 2012. Accessed 7 March 2013.
Fred Cogswell's sonnet “New Brunswick” concerns the close relationship between the people of New Brunswick and nature. Describing the ways in which they both grow strong and stand alone, this poem illustrates a sense of patriotism for New Brunswick.
Cogswell's speaker first outlines the necessary items for a plant's survival—air, soil, and water—which indicates a larger preoccupation with growth throughout the opening octet. The speaker continues as he laments that there are many things that will try to destroy the small delicate plant, such as “worms and borers” (4), and “lightning[] [which] break[s] and thunders [which] clap” (6). Despite these trials, the plant still succeeds in growing to its full potential, as “it can't escape the source that feeds its sap” (7). The speaker’s continued insistence that “no tree belies its soil, outgrows its roots” (8) underscores Cogswell's focus on the plant's resilience, while also evoking its strength. An extension of this metaphor reveals this nature narrative as an archetypal New Brunswick experience.
Cogswell furthers this metaphor in the second stanza as he describes the relationship between nature and humans. Cogswell’s use of the plural voice as he writes that it is “not soft the soil where we took root together” (9) indicates the insidious ravages of nature both on itself, and on humanity.
The poem’s closing lines further exemplify that despite these ravages, there remains capacity for growth. As Cogswell writes of trees “toughened by suns and bleak wintry weather / to grow up slow and to endure for long” (11-12), he exemplifies the continual ability of both trees and New Brunswickers to flourish despite harsh conditions.
As Cogswell creates an image of a strong New Brunswick pride throughout the sonnet’s lyricism, it is the form which adds to this overall effect. This sonnet, with a strict yet idiosyncratic metre and rhyme scheme—the octet’s ABBA ACCA varies from the standard Petrarchan sonnet, while the DEDE DD of the sestet evokes the Spenserian—reflects how the trees and people of New Brunswick are similarly constrained in their growth, demonstrated by Cogswell’s insistent metre.
As the poem draws to a close, Cogswell suggests that it is the strength born of suffering which creates lasting beauty. He observes that “all our beauty is our stubborn strength” (14), illustrating that regardless of nature’s potential ravaging, an acutely New Brunswick pride pervades, in both its landscape and its people.
Works Cited (for analysis):
Cogswell, Fred. “New Brunswick.” The Stunted Strong. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1954.
Tremblay, Tony. “Frederick William Cogswell.” New Brunswick Literary Encyclopedia. St. Thomas University, 2011. Accessed 7 March 2013.
---. “Fred Cogswell: The Many-Dimensioned Self.” Fredericton: New Brunswick Studies Centre (STU) and Electronic Text Centre (UNB), 2012. Accessed 7 March 2013.
Bibliography
Primary Sources
Cogswell, Fred. A Double Question. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1999.
---. Against Perspective. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1977.
---. An Edge to Life. Saint John, NB: Purple Wednesday Society, 1987.
---. As I See It. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1994.
---. The Best Notes Merge. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1988.
---. Black and White Tapestry. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1989.
---. The Chains of Liliput. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1971.
---. Deeper Than Mind. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2001.
---. Descent from Eden. Toronto: Ryerson, 1959.
---. Dried Flowers. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2002.
---. Folds. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1997.
---. Ghosts. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2002.
---. The Haloed Tree. Toronto: Ryerson, 1956.
---. The House Without a Door. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1973.
---. Immortal Plowman. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1969.
---. In My Own Growing. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1993.
---. In Praise of Chastity. The New Brunswick Chapbooks #12. Fredericton: University of New Brunswick, 1970.
---. In Praise of Old Music. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1992.
---. The Kindness of Stars. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2004.
---. Later in Chicago. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2003.
---. Light Bird of Life: Selected Poems. Ed. Peter Thomas. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1974.
---. Meditations: 50 Sestinas. Charlottetown: Ragweed, 1986.
---. Our Stubborn Strength. Toronto: League of Canadian Poets, 1980.
---. Pearls. Charlottetown: Ragweed, 1983.
---. Star-People. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1968.
---. The Stunted Strong. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1954.
---. The Trouble With Light. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1996.
---. Watching an Eagle. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1991.
---. When the Right Light Shines. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1992.
---. With Vision Added. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2000.
Secondary Sources
Davies, Gwendolyn. “Fred Cogswell.” Dictionary of Literary Biography. Vol. 60. Ed. W.H. New. Detroit: Gale, 1987. 33-41.
---. “Fred Cogswell.” Canadian Writers Since 1960. 2nd ed. Ed. W.H. New. Detroit: Thomson Gale, 1989. 33-41.
---. “The Three Wise Men of Maritime Literature: A Personal Tribute.” Acadiensis 30.1 (Autumn 2000): 31-7.
Forsythe, Kathleen, ed. The Vision of Fred: The Friend of Poets/Ami de Poètes [Conversations with Fred Cogswell on the Nature and Function of Poetry]. Ottawa: Borealis, 2004.
Galloway, David. “SCL Interviews: Fred Cogswell.” Studies in Canadian Literature/Études en littérature canadienne 10.1-2 (1985): 208-25.
Gibbs, Robert. “Three Decades and a Bit Under the Elms: A Fragmentary Memoir.” Essays on Canadian Writing: Literature of Atlantic Canada. Ed. Terry Whalen. 31 (Summer 1985): 231-9.
Hawkes, Robert. “Fred Cogswell: A Tribute.” The Antigonish Review 141-2 (Spring-Summer 2005): 161-64.
Hurley, Clarissa. “Unfurling the Fern.” Books in Canada 27.5 (Summer 1998): 5-6.
Lemm, Richard. “Aging With Style and Passion.” Rev. of When the Right Light Shines, and In Praise of Old Music, by Fred Cogswell. Dalhousie Review 74 (Spring 1994): 125-8.
Moore, Andrew. “The Fiddlehead.” The New Brunswick Literary Encyclopedia. Ed. Tony Tremblay. Fredericton: New Brunswick Studies Centre, 2011.
Mullen, Vernon. “University of New Brunswick.” Them Lions Will Eat Them Up. Richmond: Voyager Publishing, 1999. 27-42.
Nowlan, Alden. “Something to Write About.” Canadian Literature 68-69 (Spring/Summer 1976): 7-12.
Rossignol, Pierre. “Theme and Form in the Poetry of Fred Cogswell.” MA thesis. Laval University, 1975.
Scott, Virginia. Rev. of The Best Notes Merge, by Fred Cogswell. American Review of Canadian Studies 20.4 (Winter 1990): 447-57.
Snyder, J.K. Rev. of Black and White Tapestry, by Fred Cogswell. The Antigonish Review 84 (1991): 155-65.
Tremblay, Tony. “‘Words I write are the best of me’: Fred Cogswell, Poet, at 80.” The Fiddlehead 193 (1997): 78-81.
---. “‘I write upon the wall, Good Will to Men’: Locating the Dialectic of Art and Editing in the EarlyPoetry of Fred Cogswell.” Ellipse 68 (2002): 47-57.
---. The Fiddlehead Moment. Montreal: McGill-Queen's UP, 2019. 5-233.
Trueman, A.W. “Foreward.” The Fiddlehead 18 (1953): 2.
Ware, Tracey. “Is Fred Cogswell Beyond Criticism?” Essays on Canadian Writing 47 (1992): 105-15.
Williamson, Margie. “Four Maritime Poets: A Survey of the Works of Alden Nowlan, Fred Cogswell,Raymond Fraser and Al Pittman, As They Reflect the Spirit and Culture of the Maritime People.”
MA thesis. Dalhousie University, 1973.
For a more exhaustive source list, please visit Fred Cogswell's page at the New Brunswick Literary Encyclopedia: Cogswell NBLE
Cogswell, Fred. A Double Question. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1999.
---. Against Perspective. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1977.
---. An Edge to Life. Saint John, NB: Purple Wednesday Society, 1987.
---. As I See It. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1994.
---. The Best Notes Merge. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1988.
---. Black and White Tapestry. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1989.
---. The Chains of Liliput. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1971.
---. Deeper Than Mind. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2001.
---. Descent from Eden. Toronto: Ryerson, 1959.
---. Dried Flowers. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2002.
---. Folds. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1997.
---. Ghosts. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2002.
---. The Haloed Tree. Toronto: Ryerson, 1956.
---. The House Without a Door. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1973.
---. Immortal Plowman. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1969.
---. In My Own Growing. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1993.
---. In Praise of Chastity. The New Brunswick Chapbooks #12. Fredericton: University of New Brunswick, 1970.
---. In Praise of Old Music. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1992.
---. The Kindness of Stars. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2004.
---. Later in Chicago. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2003.
---. Light Bird of Life: Selected Poems. Ed. Peter Thomas. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1974.
---. Meditations: 50 Sestinas. Charlottetown: Ragweed, 1986.
---. Our Stubborn Strength. Toronto: League of Canadian Poets, 1980.
---. Pearls. Charlottetown: Ragweed, 1983.
---. Star-People. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1968.
---. The Stunted Strong. Fredericton: Fiddlehead Poetry Books, 1954.
---. The Trouble With Light. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1996.
---. Watching an Eagle. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1991.
---. When the Right Light Shines. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 1992.
---. With Vision Added. Nepean, ON: Borealis, 2000.
Secondary Sources
Davies, Gwendolyn. “Fred Cogswell.” Dictionary of Literary Biography. Vol. 60. Ed. W.H. New. Detroit: Gale, 1987. 33-41.
---. “Fred Cogswell.” Canadian Writers Since 1960. 2nd ed. Ed. W.H. New. Detroit: Thomson Gale, 1989. 33-41.
---. “The Three Wise Men of Maritime Literature: A Personal Tribute.” Acadiensis 30.1 (Autumn 2000): 31-7.
Forsythe, Kathleen, ed. The Vision of Fred: The Friend of Poets/Ami de Poètes [Conversations with Fred Cogswell on the Nature and Function of Poetry]. Ottawa: Borealis, 2004.
Galloway, David. “SCL Interviews: Fred Cogswell.” Studies in Canadian Literature/Études en littérature canadienne 10.1-2 (1985): 208-25.
Gibbs, Robert. “Three Decades and a Bit Under the Elms: A Fragmentary Memoir.” Essays on Canadian Writing: Literature of Atlantic Canada. Ed. Terry Whalen. 31 (Summer 1985): 231-9.
Hawkes, Robert. “Fred Cogswell: A Tribute.” The Antigonish Review 141-2 (Spring-Summer 2005): 161-64.
Hurley, Clarissa. “Unfurling the Fern.” Books in Canada 27.5 (Summer 1998): 5-6.
Lemm, Richard. “Aging With Style and Passion.” Rev. of When the Right Light Shines, and In Praise of Old Music, by Fred Cogswell. Dalhousie Review 74 (Spring 1994): 125-8.
Moore, Andrew. “The Fiddlehead.” The New Brunswick Literary Encyclopedia. Ed. Tony Tremblay. Fredericton: New Brunswick Studies Centre, 2011.
Mullen, Vernon. “University of New Brunswick.” Them Lions Will Eat Them Up. Richmond: Voyager Publishing, 1999. 27-42.
Nowlan, Alden. “Something to Write About.” Canadian Literature 68-69 (Spring/Summer 1976): 7-12.
Rossignol, Pierre. “Theme and Form in the Poetry of Fred Cogswell.” MA thesis. Laval University, 1975.
Scott, Virginia. Rev. of The Best Notes Merge, by Fred Cogswell. American Review of Canadian Studies 20.4 (Winter 1990): 447-57.
Snyder, J.K. Rev. of Black and White Tapestry, by Fred Cogswell. The Antigonish Review 84 (1991): 155-65.
Tremblay, Tony. “‘Words I write are the best of me’: Fred Cogswell, Poet, at 80.” The Fiddlehead 193 (1997): 78-81.
---. “‘I write upon the wall, Good Will to Men’: Locating the Dialectic of Art and Editing in the EarlyPoetry of Fred Cogswell.” Ellipse 68 (2002): 47-57.
---. The Fiddlehead Moment. Montreal: McGill-Queen's UP, 2019. 5-233.
Trueman, A.W. “Foreward.” The Fiddlehead 18 (1953): 2.
Ware, Tracey. “Is Fred Cogswell Beyond Criticism?” Essays on Canadian Writing 47 (1992): 105-15.
Williamson, Margie. “Four Maritime Poets: A Survey of the Works of Alden Nowlan, Fred Cogswell,Raymond Fraser and Al Pittman, As They Reflect the Spirit and Culture of the Maritime People.”
MA thesis. Dalhousie University, 1973.
For a more exhaustive source list, please visit Fred Cogswell's page at the New Brunswick Literary Encyclopedia: Cogswell NBLE
