Samuel Greenberg
Encyclopedia
Samuel Bernard Greenberg (December 13, 1893 – August 16, 1917) was an Austrian
-American
Jewish poet
and artist
. Greenberg grew up in poverty on the Lower East Side
of New York City
and spent the last years of his life in and out of charity hospitals. He died of tuberculosis
in the Manhattan State Hospital
on Wards Island. What little mainstream critical attention he has received has arisen through debate over the poet Hart Crane
's re-writing of several Greenberg poems, most notably "Conduct", into "Emblems of Conduct" by Crane.
Austrians
Austrians are a nation and ethnic group, consisting of the population of the Republic of Austria and its historical predecessor states who share a common Austrian culture and Austrian descent....
-American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Jewish poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
and artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
. Greenberg grew up in poverty on the Lower East Side
Lower East Side
The Lower East Side, LES, is a neighborhood in the southeastern part of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is roughly bounded by Allen Street, East Houston Street, Essex Street, Canal Street, Eldridge Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street....
of 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...
and spent the last years of his life in and out of charity hospitals. He died of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
in the Manhattan State Hospital
Manhattan State Hospital
The Manhattan Psychiatric Center is a New York-state run psychiatric hospital on 125th Street on Wards Island in New York City. As of 2009 it is licensed for 509 beds, but only holds around 200 patients. The current building is 17-stories tall....
on Wards Island. What little mainstream critical attention he has received has arisen through debate over the poet Hart Crane
Hart Crane
-Career:Throughout the early 1920s, small but well-respected literary magazines published some of Crane’s lyrics, gaining him, among the avant-garde, a respect that White Buildings , his first volume, ratified and strengthened...
's re-writing of several Greenberg poems, most notably "Conduct", into "Emblems of Conduct" by Crane.