Lizette Woodworth Reese

Lizette Woodworth Reese (January 9, 1856 - December 17, 1935) was an American poet and teacher. Reese was born in Maryland. She taught English for almost five decades in the schools of Baltimore.[1] She developed, even in her childhood, a strong and vigorous faculty with lyrics. As an adult, her creations were commended by critics in Europe and the United States. In her use of the sonnet, Reese displayed skill and facility of execution. Her sonnet entitled "Tears" was characterized as having a...See more

Lizette Woodworth Reese (January 9, 1856 - December 17, 1935) was an American poet and teacher. Reese was born in Maryland. She taught English for almost five decades in the schools of Baltimore.[1] She developed, even in her childhood, a strong and vigorous faculty with lyrics. As an adult, her creations were commended by critics in Europe and the United States. In her use of the sonnet, Reese displayed skill and facility of execution. Her sonnet entitled "Tears" was characterized as having a pure John Miltonic note, above all in the preluding lines. This form of verse afforded a rich and stimulating field for Reese's rhythmic and metric capabilities. Among her published works, the strongest and most appealing include: "A Branch of May"; "A Handful of Lavender"; "A Quiet Road"; "The Cry of the Old House"; "Anne"; "Keats"; "The Daffodils"; "Trust"; "In Time of Grief"; "An English Missal"; and "A Celtic Maying Story." A biography of Reese, as well as a discriminating estimate of her poetic achievements, may be found in the Library of Southern Literature, by Letitia Humphreys Yonge Wrenshall of Baltimore. Though Reese was successful in prose as well as in poetry, the latter was her forté.[2] See less