Richard Howard, poet, translator, and critic, was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He writes sophisticated, learned, and witty verse and is a craftsman in an era during which most poets have ignored technical skills. In the Eastern literary establishment, he is recognized as one of the leading contemporary poets, but his name is not widely known among scholars or lay readers (although each of his books has received numerous reviews in prestigious newspapers and journals, there have been no scholarly studies of his poetry). His translations have earned him such a distinguished reputation among translators, publishers, and French writers that he has become better known as a translator than as a poet. After graduating from Shaker Heights High School, he attended Columbia University where he received a B.A. (1951) and an M.A. (1952). While a senior at Columbia and editor of the Columbia Review, he devoted a special issue...