Walter Benton: The Passionate Poet
86Walter Benton has been my bedside companion for a very long time, going back to college where I discovered him 50 years ago. I have shared him with many " creatures of an hour ", most intimately with my beautiful bride, and never tire of his passionate and lyrical prose.
Walter Benton was born in Austria, in 1907, to a Russian couple. They fled Austria with the coming of the First World War in 1913. After working several menial jobs he had enough money to put himself through Ohio University, graduating in 1934. This was the time of the Great Depression and work was hard to find. After working as a window washer, steel plant worker, and salesman, he finally landed a position with the City of New York as a social investigator. With the onset of World War Two he enlisted in the Army, being commissioned a second lieutenant in the Signal Corps, later being promoted to Captain.
At the end of the war he returned to his position with the City of New York and began writing prose, being published in the Yale Review, Fantasy, and the New Republic. His first published volume, " This is My Beloved ", a diary from 1943 put to verse, was very controversial due to the graphic intensity of his prose. Some even called it pornography. It has since been hailed as a remarkable journey of love, love lost, and love unrequited. It is recognized as an American classic.
Here are a few of my favorite snippets from " This is My Beloved ", better appreciated in context, but giving you a feel of the intense passion, his use of metaphor and simile, and the stark clarity of his love:
Entry May 4
You rise out of sleep like a growing thing rises out of the garden soil.
Two leaves part to be your mouth, two tender seed leaves...and your eyes are wonderfully starlike,
Your eyes are luminous and soft as the velvet of pansies.
Darling, good morning.
The entry continues with a rather passionate awakening.
Entry May 11
Your hair is not like the silk of corn or spiders but like your hair, your mouth resembling nothing so wonderfully much as your own mouth.
Why should I say you are like a slender water bird on wing ? This is but a slide of you, a fraction. Or that your thighs are lilies...lilies are cold, lilies are neither quick nor scented....they do not stain the night with velvet musk...they cannot fire love and quench it.
I mean.....compliments become you as tinsel becomes a tall snow covered cedar in a mountain cedar wood.
I love the visual beauty of his writing.
Entry June 8
( After a long night of lovemaking )....Now you are all sleep, alone with yourself...and a tall blue fence around you: not a tendon taut, not a secret secret, you are all sleep and alone in a warm and velvet world...
Many an idle dream is looking for a home of sleep like yours to happen in.
Entry June 12
Sleep late, nobody cares what time it is. Sunday morning, coffee in bed....then love with coffee flavored kisses. And your tongue dripping honey like a ripe fig.
I have been hours awake looking at you lithely at rest in the free natural way rivers bed and clouds shape.
Your bedgown gathers up your full round thighs, rolls over your hips. Your breasts are snub like childrens faces...your navel deep
as a god's eye.
He only published two volumes of prose, " This is My Beloved ", followed in 1948 with " No Greater Need ". The first is a diary of new love, a deep and passionate love that slowly becomes a tragic hell he cannot escape. When I first read his August 9 entry about forgetting her in each season, I wept.
He dedicates the volume to Lillian, so we are reasonably certain she did exist. The last is a dark and sad diary of love lost and love unrequited. Walter Benton died in 1976, bitter and alone.
Such a tragic and poignant story, because that is what it really is, a love story, during the war, where two souls are united in need, his to last a lifetime, hers to end when he recognizes that she is " marketing your love " as he writes in the November 19 entry.
The writing is so powerful, his descriptions of Lillian are so full of love. How could she have left..? I feel his pain every time I read him.
I have also found a wonderful cd, " The Family of Mann ", featuring Herbie Mann ( Jazz ) and Sir Lawrence Harvey reading excerpts from " This is My Beloved ".
OK, you guys. You want to have a great evening around the fireplace with your wife or girlfriend ( hey, a wife is a girlfriend ), then pick up " This is My Beloved ",put on the cd, pour your favorite adult beverage, put out a box of Kleenex, and revel in a love for the ages.
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Maven, I completely understand why you love Benton so much... Thank you SO much for inspiring me to go get the book! (This Weekend!) And even though I may not be able to read it aloud, I am SURE I will be touched. Wonderful hub maven! Now, how about one on Keats??? :)
Sligobay....thank you for the kind comment....and you, sir, are a gentleman and scholar, and will forever be my friend when you gave me the Semper Fi salutation in another Hub....
Mama...what can I say...you are an enigma, a mystery wrapped in a conundrum...probably a soul mate...thank you for the comments...why can you not read him aloud...? You should scream his words of passion, whisper his words of love, cry with him when he hurts...this is prose meant to be experienced, and not alone....
Keats will be difficult for me, on many levels...If I can get past my pesky emotionalism I will try as you suggest.
Hi Maven101,
I love your narratives; it gets me right into a book! And I come out roped up with lots of emotions! Amazing.
Thank you, Priceless....your comments are indeed priceless..!
I try to point you in the right direction, but it will be Walter Benton that will gin up your emotional engine...he has done so for me for many years now....Cheers
Hi Maven - thanks for the fascinating Hub about I poet I do not know at all. So I did what I always do when faced with something unknown - I Googled him and came up with a sax player born in 1930! That's the only article in Wikipedia on a Walter Benton. I think you could write one on the poet for Wikipedia!
Of course your Hubs came up in the search as well, which is good news for you!
Also the Family of Mann CD which as a jazz fanatic I am going to try to find immediately.
This is what I love about HubPages - there's always something new that Hub friends lead me to.
Loved the Hub. Small point - a "dairy" is not the same as a "diary"!
Love and peace
Tony
Thanks, Tony...The Herbie Mann CD is terrific jazz and the monologue by Sir Lawrence Harvey is powerful
I can't believe I wrote dairy, not once, but three times...since corrected...to err is human... but McGurk will not forgive...
I AM SO LOST IN THOSE WORDS...YOU HAVE ME CONVINCEDTO HAVE TO READ MORE!
Maven,
I have a question that you could possibly answer.
Recreational literature has never been on my agenda, unless it was required in school. That would make it not recreational but I was exposed to it. I don't believe that I was ever required to read poetry.
What are the attributes that poetry has to describe something, that is lacking in prose? Is there a relation between song writing and poetry.
Thanks
Eyes...After reading your sensitive and honest profile I can understand why you would respond to Walter Benton....He is all about love, and the necessary pain that intrudes in the real world...I am so glad for you that your father is back in your life...It is so important for children to have a father figure in their lives, and lucky you, you have two..!
Hi Issues...Poetry, unfortunately, is seldom exposed to pre-college students...unless you have an enlightened English teacher, like Sister Kazamara, whom I was fortunate to have in high school...
You asked "What are the attributes that poetry has to describe something, that is lacking in prose "? First, we need to define prose. Prose, as you are speaking to, would be the use of language as used in ordinary speech, much less artificially constructed as poetry ( " the best use of words in the best order ").
Another use of prose is called " free verse ", which is unrestricted, free-flowing, stream-of-consciousness words without the poetic disciplines of rhyme, rhythm, alliteration, and other subscribed elements of poetry. This last is the "prose " I am referring to with Walter Benton...
The evocation of emotions, the sensual appreciation created by this type of prose poetry, if you will, cannot be equivocated with ordinary speech.
The use of metaphor and simile lay open the poetic descriptions and bring us to an intimate association with the poet, or just with the poem.
In my case, I truly felt Walter's terrible loss and pain. Few things bring me to tears, but I have to tell you, every time I read him, particularly his 2nd volume, " No Greater Need ", I need to be alone, or with someone I love and trust.
Is there a relationship between song writing and poetry..? Yes indeed. The one is set to music, the other to meter. Song writing, backed by provocative music, can be just as stimulating, sensual, and emotive as the best poetry ever written.
A couple of examples come to mind. " Ruby ", sung by Kenny Rogers, and " Lying Eyes ", by the Eagles. I'm a sucker for cowboy blues. Both these songs produce both anger and sadness.
Music and poetry is like art: It's in the eye of the beholder...Larry
Maven,
Thanks for the insight and details.
I like to use metaphos and I can rhyme unfortunately without converying emotion.
Your answer has stirred more questions which I have to ponder as I go hiter to and yonder of which I think you will be less fonder.
not poetry but rhyning without meaning, apparently my gift. :)
very nice article
HAW !!! Issues.....Tis not what you say, or what you may, but what you do where you play...
This kind of poetry is sort of like playing tennis without a net...Larry
Thanks, Lgali...Have you read him...?
Maven, I find the net keeps trapping the ball.
Thanks,
Well, I missed out on book shopping, but as you see, I am back here again...
I am thinking about writing yet another poetic "prose", I'm just waiting for the right mood and inspiration to come along. In the meantime, I have been publishing other "non-related" stuff, just to pass the time by.
By the way Maven, have you read my hub "Laughter for the Heart & Soul"? (You inspired me for PART of this one!!!)
}i{
Shannon....I just finished reading your hilarious Hub...now let me guess what PART I inspired you to write about....hmmmmm....would it perchance have something to do with my hirsute challenged pate..??? Hmmmm ( bows head, waits expectantly for platonic peck )...
...and AS he bows his head, feather hat under arm, the sunlight shines down on his "hirsute challenged pate", ...reflects in my mind's eye, and ALAS! ...The platonic peck... You blinded me, mate! COVER YE' SOLAR PANEL!- RECHARGE LATER!!!...
(wink...wink)
}i{
Thanks maven101. I will now become a fan of this poet Benton. I'm excited
CC...I am excited for you...discovering a new writer that speaks to your heart and soul is always exciting..
maven101 not yet but i will do later
Lgali... He may be a bit hard to find...your best bet is probably Amazon....I think I saw " This is my Beloved " there...he only published two volumes of poetry including " No Greater Need "....His is the kind of poetry you can read over and over again and still perceive new insights with each reading....
To read Benton and to fee his words, really lets you in on something so intimate. Over the years, the language of love is felt, spoken, written, read and remembered, if it is a treasure. "This is my beloved" is a treasure...for all times.
I discovered this, Benton's first volume among my dear great aunt's things some years ago after her passing away. Her copy was a gift, inscribed by a gentleman, (unknown to me) was published as perhaps one of the first edition off the press. I say this because the date on the inscription was 1945.
This is written in loving memory of my aunt who was dearly loved by family and friends at Tougaloo College, University of Chicago and undoubtedly many places along her lifes path.
Douglas...Your Aunt seems an inspirational soul to be remembered in this way...
Wow..! An early edition of Benton's " This is my Beloved " is extremely rare...I can only remark on the many readings of pleasure it must have given her and her friend...A real treasure for you in many ways...
Thanks for your heartfelt comments...
Arthur Prysock tells Benton story ever so well. I have not heard "The family of Mann". But I heard Prysock when I was 19 and I still listen to the story. His story fills my soul, I'm 55 now.
Thanks for the comment, Liz....
I have heard the Prysock recording " This is my Beloved " which was put out several years after the Herbie Mann recording with recitation by Laurence Harvey... I must say, Prysock and Billy Eckstine were my two favorite jazz baritones, but when it comes to recitation with feelings of deep love and unbearable hurt I think Harvey is worlds away...He was a trained shakespearean actor of the first rank and the emotion he generates is incomparable ...
Prysock's " My Funny Valentine " is better than Billy X's I believe...
This is why I love reading hubpages. The introduction to something new and moving. The sharing of something touching and deep that leaves marks upon ones own soul provides me, the reader, with such a gift.
FOL: Thank you for the sharing comments...I agree, there is something special about reading that generates a profound emotional and intellectual response not found in other media...rereading a particular passage of intimate passion connects on a personal level that can touch the soul, inspire new insights, and challenge our way of looking at interpersonal relationships...
Like TonyMac04, I had not heard of Benton -- thanks for the introduction to his work.
Teresa...Sadly, Walter only published the two diaries, This is my Beloved and No Greater Need...sometimes an entire life can be expressed, poignantly, with just a few pages...his life began and ended with his relationship with Lillian....that is a love so deep, so all-consuming, that few of us ever realize...I love my wife, passionately, but I'm not sure that love is as consuming, as total, as Benton's....
Now I'm in trouble...
Lovely! And I found Benton's THIS IS MY BELOVED in a junk shop bin. Can you imagine? It reminds me, in tone (but much less graphic language) of John Ciardi's I MARRY YOU. Benton, however goes totally for broke emotionally, and bares body and soul in his completely raw, exposed love verses. I couldn't put it down...and I am afraid if I end it out I'll NEVER get it back!
NO, No, No,...never lend it out...instead share it with your friend(s) and enjoy his uninhibited and joyous love together...Now, his 2nd dairy, No Greater Need, is different..you may want to lend it out, because it should be read alone, the emotions provoked may overwhelm and the sadness and futility expressed will kick in emotional responses quite unexpected....Larry
Thanks you for the brief education, Maven. I truly enjoyed the excerpts you chose.
Scott.
Thank you Scott...His passion was really something to behold...such love, such despair.! I never tire of reading him, nor does my wife..he is truly a bedside companion...Larry
I enjoyed the pieces of poetry you selected. I will have to read more of your hubs... I know nothing about poetry!
Ms Chievous...Thank you for stopping by...You don't really have to know anything about poetry...like art, poetry is a sensual experience, only verbally, not visually...although some poems and prose will generate brilliant images in your mind...Like Russ Baleson has said, don't try to understand the poem, just feel it with your heart and soul...Speak it out loud, savor the ebb and flow of the words...Walter Benton once described a shooting star " Like God striking a match across the cathedral ceiling "...you have a whole new world in front of you...go out and enjoy...Larry
Thank you for introducing me to a poet from the past! Who knew there was such a good market for passionate emotions a century later? Cool! It is a delight to read a deep poet when there is such "surface" poetry without much deep thought, revision or polish littered online. Thanks for the word treat, much appreciated!
Thank you for stopping by Denny...Your comments are well taken and discerning for someone under 40...Larry
I'm into poetry, also. I'm a retired teacher of British Literature, so I guess it goes with the territory!
Nice hub.
Hi habee...I have to say, English Lit was my favorite course...My Latin teacher, Sister Kazamara, doubled as the EngLit teacher...I still laugh when I remember her, with her heavy Russian accent, reading Keats, Byron, and especially Chaucer...Thanks for stopping by and commenting...Larry
Enjoyed this so much I read it twice! I'll have to read more from this poet. I wish I had 1/10 of his ability with words and emotions!
habee...You should be able to get his " This is my Beloved " and " No greater Need " through Amazon....His poetry is meant to be read aloud, with company...and maybe a glass of wine or two...thanks for the comments, I know you will enjoy his passion as much as I have over the years...Larry
I really enjoyed your expressions of Benton! I had not heard of him before, yet you've sold me on reading his works. I love deeply expressive prose. Thanks, Larry! :)
Invictus...I knew you would like Benton...your expressive poetry resonates with his passion...I have been reading poetry all my life, and Benton's prose keeps pulling me back...back into that early, passionate love and into that hell of rejection...I actually find new nuances in his prose almost every time I read him...Lillian was his ideal, his apex of transcendent love, and his long and tortured fall from that summit defines his life and inspires mine...Thanks for stopping by...Larry
I have loved This Is My Beloved since I was 19 years old. It was too beautiful for me to truly appreciate in my youth. I have read and reread this beautiful book a thousand times and I am old enough now to appreciate each and every word. There is a beautiful CD of the book with narration by Arthur Prysock that is breath taking.
Aloah...Thanks for stopping by and commenting...Yes, I have a copy of the Prysock recording, but I still think the Sir Laurence Harvey recording is superior...Larry
Benton has long been a favorite of mine as well. My first novel draws on lines of his poetry for the title and many passages in the story. While working to obtain permission to use his words, I became acquainted with his niece who was able to grant that permission shortly before she passed. Mr. Benton (Walter Potashnik) lived with his niece for many years before moving to a long-term care facility where he died in 1976. From information I've gotten, I know he and Lillian were married but the reasons for their breakup remain hidden in Benton's poems. I purchased the Prysock recording and was sorely disappointed in the tone as he read. Where is the romance that Benton exuded? Glad to find another fan!
Cordially,
Jeanne
Jeanne...Wow, to have conversed with Benton's niece..! So many questions come to mind...You have answered one such with the revelation, hitherto unknown to me, that Lillian was indeed married to Walter....Why would she " market " her love..?
There is so much passion, and pathos, in Benton's prose with every line he writes...No filler with him...everything laid out bare-bones, immediate still, a love and passion we all long for, and some find...Did you find his " Never a Greater Need " emotionally hard to read ? There are passages in there that read like a man that has given up on Lillian's love and pathetically clings to his unreciprocated passions...
We are both so fortunate to have read him in our youth, and experienced his passions and unbounded love....I have often wondered why he stopped writing after " No Greater Need "...perhaps his inspiration ( and passion ) left him when he was betrayed by Lillian...Can you imagine what he would have contributed to literature had he remained motivated by a passionate love..?
Thanks for stopping by and leaving your wonderfully informative comments...Larry
Dear Maven 101, this truly is a find. Such sensuous and beautiful imagery and as you say so powerful. My next step is to look up your sight and discover what other wonderful hubs you have. So glad to have discovered both you and Walter Benton
Donna...You will be rewarded in your discovery of Walter Benton in many ways...He pulls you into his world, a world of deep, passionate love, and unimagined pain ... I think of the moth to the flame analogy and can't help but relate Benton's self-torture in continuing the relationship, even when faced with her perfidy and aloofness...
Welcome to HubPages...another poet is always most welcome here...Larry
sligobay says:
10 months ago
Maven, you are a poet and a remarkably sensitive meunsch. Before this Hub, i had been inspired along these lines with some hubs and poems of my own. I am delighted to be informed of the artistic greatness of a tortured soul such as Benton was. G