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The pastoral tradition in poetry began in Greece around 750 BCE and reemerged during the Renaissance in Italy and England. It’s marked by idealized depictions of rural life and landscapes, presenting a simpler and more innocent way of living, often imagined for the benefit of urban audiences. Writers such as Hesiod, Virgil, Dante, Petrarch, Alexander Pope, and Christopher Marlowe all contributed to the development of this tradition.

Pastoral themes continue to appear in contemporary poetry, sometimes to echo earlier works and sometimes to question or complicate them. To illustrate this ongoing influence, we’ve gathered ten contemporary pastoral poems available on JSTOR. As always, all are free to download.

“Pastoral,” Louise Glück
“Central Park,” Alex Dimitrov
“Nebraska,” Barbara Guest
“Pastoral,” Rebecca Lehmann
“Anthropocene Pastoral,” Catherine Pierce
“Pastoral,” Debora Kuan
“Hematology,” Sam Sax
“Divining Rod,” Arielle Greenberg
“Pastoral,” James Tate
“Southern Pastoral,” Natasha Trethewey

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poems and poetryteachingCallalooChicago ReviewPoetryPrairie SchoonerSalmagundiThe American Poetry ReviewThe Iowa ReviewThe Threepenny Review

Resources

JSTOR is a digital library for scholars, researchers, and students. JSTOR Daily readers can access the original research behind our articles for free on JSTOR.

Pastoral
By: Louise Glück
The Threepenny Review, No. 114 (SUMMER 2008), p. 29
Threepenny Review
Central Park
By: ALEX DIMITROV
Salmagundi, No. 194 (Spring 2017), pp. 116–117
Skidmore College
NEBRASKA
By: BARBARA GUEST
Chicago Review, Vol. 53/54, Vol. 53, no. 4 – Vol. 54, no. 1/2 (SUMMER 2008), pp. 80–81
Chicago Review
Pastoral
By: Rebecca Lehmann
Prairie Schooner, Vol. 95, No. 1 (SPRING 2021), pp. 162–163
University of Nebraska Press
Anthropocene Pastoral
By: Catherine Pierce
The American Poetry Review, Vol. 46, No. 6 (NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2017), p. 44
Old City Publishing, Inc.
Pastoral
By: Debora Kuan
The Iowa Review, Vol. 35, No. 3 (Winter 2005/2006), pp. 100–101
University of Iowa
Hematology
By: SAM SAX
Poetry, Vol. 208, No. 3 (JUNE 2016), pp. 221–223
Poetry Foundation
Pastoral: Divining Rod
By: Arielle Greenberg
The American Poetry Review, Vol. 45, No. 6 (NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2016), p. 7
Old City Publishing, Inc.
Pastoral
By: JAMES TATE
The American Poetry Review, Vol. 17, No. 4 (JULY/AUGUST 1988), p. 6
Old City Publishing, Inc.
Southern Pastoral
By: Natasha Trethewey
Callaloo, Vol. 27, No. 4, Contemporary African-American Poetry: A New Wave (Autumn, 2004), p. 1041
The Johns Hopkins University Press