Haag, John
Born: April 6, 1926 in Sandpoint, Idaho
Died:
Literary Vocations: Professor, Poet
Geographic Connection to Pennsylvania: Bellefonte, Centre County

Keywords: Bellefonte, Centre Daily Times, Fulbright Fellowship, Merchant Marines, Pennsylvania State University, Poet, Reading University of England, University of Washington, Woodrow Wilson Fellow

Abstract: John Haag was born April 6, 1926 in Sandpoint, Idaho. He went on to be a professor at the Pennsylvania State University and has published three volumes of poetry. He currently resides in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania.

Biography:

John Haag was born April 6, 1926, in Sandpoint, Idaho to Joseph Paul and Bertha Haag. After he graduated high school he immediately started work causing a seven-year gap between his high school graduation and his freshman year of college. He was a graduate of the University of Washington and had a Fulbright fellowship at Reading University in England. While at the University of Washington he was a Woodrow Wilson fellow. As he was seven years older than most of the other students at the University, he wasn't involved in many typical undergraduate activities; however, he did spend time giving guidance to the younger students. Haag was also a veteran of the Merchant Marines in World War II and a navel veteran of the Korean Conflict.

He has published three collections of his poetry: The Mirrored Man (1961), The Brine Breather (1971), and his award-winning collection Stones Don't Float: Poems Selected and New (1997). Critics have praised him for his ability to manipulate form and for the musical and lyrical aspects of his poetry. When asked where he gets the inspiration for his poems he stated, "Anywhere I can get it--mostly life itself! When something hits you as having a deep relevance I use it!" Many of his poems reflect directly on his life and his experiences in the Merchant Marines. In his most recent book, Stones Don't Float, he has a whole section of poems devoted to the sea like "Sea Song."

Sea Song

The breast of the sea
swells in the fresh
breeze:
on the sand
the sea leaves
love marks:
in love
change must be constant.

On the bay, bulls heel,
rail awash, wind
ripening the sails: so
blood floods and fills.

In the water, sand
and wind, the sail
and swelling blood,
I feel you flow
and bend--
flesh and spirit held
in the same arching move:
the tongue of love.

Haag's most recent book has also won him awards. He has had the honor of having his poem, "Eggs" set to music and performed by a local children's choir. The purpose of the children's choral was to celebrate State College's centennial and was called, "Mother Nature."

Currently John Haag resides in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania and is involved in the community there and surrounding Pennsylvania State University. He is a frequent contributor to the Centre Daily Times, State College's local newspaper. Many of his letters to the editor are of a political nature. In 1988 he married Corene Johnson; she was his second wife after his first brief marriage. His newest project is a book of poetry that he likes to call "woven poetry." They are triads that form patterns on the page and are similar to haikus.

Works:

• The Mirrored Man. Reading, UK: School of Fine Arts, 1961.
• The Brine Breather. Santa Cruz, CA: Kayak Books, 1971.
• Stones Don't Float: Poems Selected and New. Columbus: Ohio State UP, 1997.

Sources:

• Brown, Nancy Marie. "'Losing Touch' Poet John Haag and Leonard Rubinstein read from and discuss Haag's award-winning collection, Stones Don't Float." Odyssey Through Literature.18 March 1997. 18 February 2005. <http://www.rps.psu.edu/otl/programs/240.html>.
• Crittenden, Deshan L. "Protestors of the 60s, 70s Back in 2001." Centre Daily Times. (2001)
• "Featured Poet Archives: John Haag." Poetry Magazine. 13 April 1998. 18 February 2005. <http://www.poetrymagazine.org/featured_poet_0413.html>.
• Haag, John. Stones Don't Float. Columbus: Ohio State UP, 1997.
• Haag, John. Telephone Interview with Jennifer Spence. 21 April 2005.

This biographical sketch was prepared by Rebecca Brentner.