What can poetry teach us about essential life lessons like paying attention, embracing uncertainty, and finding ways to begin new chapters in our lives? Join acclaimed poet Major Jackson, Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Chair in the Humanities, professor of English and director of creative writing, in a special summer remix of the Quantum Potential podcast with Provost C. Cybele Raver.

Major Jackson is the author of numerous books of poetry and anthologies. He recently edited an anthology of poems, essays and recipes called A Bowl of Goodness: Nourishing Poems with a Side of Soup, Celebrating Community, Friendship, and Resilience, being released in October 2026.

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Correction: Philip Levine's What Work Is (Alfred A. Knopf) won the National Book Foundation's National Book Award for Poetry in 1991.

Correction: Frank Bidart wrote a prose poem titled "Borges and I" that appears in his 1997 book Desire (Farrar Straus & Giroux).

This episode was produced by Vanderbilt University and created through the collaboration of Randolph Infinger, Sydney Jones-Wright, Amber Palmer-Halma, Patrick Sams, Jennifer Stevens, Maisie Wilson, and Amy Wolf, with original music by Steven Matthew Carter.

This episode was edited and mixed by the team at Sound On // Sound Off. You can learn more about their work at SoundOnSoundOff.com.

Special thanks to Jad Abumrad, Vanderbilt University Distinguished Research Professor of Communication of Science and Technology and the executive producer of the Quantum Potential podcast and video series.

Copyright 2026, Vanderbilt University.

The views and opinions expressed by guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host or Vanderbilt University.

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