despite his success, roethkes bouts of illness and heavy drinking complicated his personal life. his marriage to beatrice o'connell provided some stability, and she played a crucial role in ensuring his posthumous publications, including the far field (published in 1964).  roethkes poetry often delved into the natural world with an intensity and sensitivity that is rare, focusing not just on the beauty of nature but also its harshness, ambiguity, and mystery. his famous "greenhouse poems," especially works like the lost son, use lush, organic imagery to explore the poet's sense of being in the worlda state of being that often straddled the line between life and death, growth and decay. roethkes love poems, particularly those in the waking and words for the wind, reveal another dimension of his artistry: a deeply personal and sensuous connection to love, self, and others. his work maintained a strong lyrical quality, even as he explored the spiritual and the philosophical, drawing inspiration from figures like meister eckhart and jacob boehme during his ford foundation-sponsored study of philosophy. roethke was lauded by many of his contemporaries. james dickey famously considered roethke the greatest american poet, claiming that his work possessed a "deep, gut vitality." fellow poet stanley kunitz echoed this sentiment, recognizing roethke as a key figure of his generation. harold bloom also acknowledged roethkes influence, placing him among the most accomplished poets of the "middle generation" in american poetry, alongside figures like elizabeth bishop and robert penn warren.
United States