Fielding Dawson
Encyclopedia
Fielding Dawson was a beat
-era author of short stories and novels, a student of the Black Mountain College
. He was also a painter & collagist whose works were seen in several books of poetry & many literary magazines.
Born in New York City
, Dawson was known for his stream-of-consciousness style before the term was coined. Much of his work was lax in punctuation to emphasize the immediacy of thought. Additionally, dialogue would often be used to break this up. Though conversational, much of his dialogue could often halt the metre while still staying on track. His lack of deference toward tradition in writing, other than that of the necessity to evoke humanity, often painfully raw, is what puts him in the category of many of his better-known contemporaries, such as Jack Kerouac
or Allen Ginsberg
.
Dawson was still writing up until his unexpected death in January 2002. He had become a teacher, first in prisons like Sing Sing
, and continuing on to work with at-risk students at Upward Bound High School
in Hartwick, New York
.
Beat generation
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American post-WWII writers who came to prominence in the 1950s, as well as the cultural phenomena that they both documented and inspired...
-era author of short stories and novels, a student of the Black Mountain College
Black Mountain College
Black Mountain College, a school founded in 1933 in Black Mountain, North Carolina, was a new kind of college in the United States in which the study of art was seen to be central to a liberal arts education, and in which John Dewey's principles of education played a major role...
. He was also a painter & collagist whose works were seen in several books of poetry & many literary magazines.
Born in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Dawson was known for his stream-of-consciousness style before the term was coined. Much of his work was lax in punctuation to emphasize the immediacy of thought. Additionally, dialogue would often be used to break this up. Though conversational, much of his dialogue could often halt the metre while still staying on track. His lack of deference toward tradition in writing, other than that of the necessity to evoke humanity, often painfully raw, is what puts him in the category of many of his better-known contemporaries, such as Jack Kerouac
Jack Kerouac
Jean-Louis "Jack" Lebris de Kerouac was an American novelist and poet. He is considered a literary iconoclast and, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Kerouac is recognized for his spontaneous method of writing, covering topics such as Catholic...
or Allen Ginsberg
Allen Ginsberg
Irwin Allen Ginsberg was an American poet and one of the leading figures of the Beat Generation in the 1950s. He vigorously opposed militarism, materialism and sexual repression...
.
Dawson was still writing up until his unexpected death in January 2002. He had become a teacher, first in prisons like Sing Sing
Sing Sing
Sing Sing Correctional Facility is a maximum security prison operated by the New York State Department of Correctional Services in the town of Ossining, New York...
, and continuing on to work with at-risk students at Upward Bound High School
Upward Bound High School
Upward Bound High School in Hartwick, New York was the first alternative education program in Otsego County, New York. Created by English teacher Mike Newell and principal Mark Rathbun, the school was first located in the basement of a Unitarian church in Oneonta, New York.Created in the mid-1980s,...
in Hartwick, New York
Hartwick, New York
Hartwick is a town located in Otsego County, New York, USA. As of the 2000 census, the town had a population of 2,203.Town of Hartwick is located in the middle of the county, southwest of Village of Cooperstown....
.