The Yellow House on the Corner was a work of Dove’s that many critics questioned the material on whether it was autobiographical-since the movement of the poetry went from girlhood to womanhood. The earliest publications of Dove’s work were the chapbooks, entitled Ten Poems (1977) and The Only Dark Spot in the Sky (1980), both of which contain poetry that was later published in Dove’s book, The Yellow House on the Corner that was published the same year as The Only Dark Spot in the Sky. From this union the happy couple had a daughter, Aviva, in t he 1983. This particular piece provided historical insight into Dove’s maternal grandparents exploring both the personal and social struggles they endured during their lifetime in Akron, Ohio.ĭuring Dove’s time at the University of Iowa, she met and fell in love with another Fulbright scholar, a man by the name of Fred Viebahn. Within a short period of time, Dove managed to publish four chapbooks, five volumes of poetry, a book of short stories, Fifth Sunday (1985), and a full length novel, Thomas and Beulah (1986). Her poetry debut would start as early as the year 1974 shown as periodicals. Following her graduation in the year 1973, Drove received a full-acceptance scholarship to Tubingen University in West Germany-a place that would come to influence her later work.ĭove continued with her education with the graduate program at the University of Iowa’s Writer Workshop. From this moment forward, she enrolled as a National Achievement Scholar into Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. This invitation was an award that the top one hundred high school seniors received annually-Dove had made the cut. In 1970, Dove’s first major recognition of her work was received with an invitation to the White House as a Presidential Scholar. It was during her time in high school, when Rita was invited by her teacher to a local writer’s conference, that Dove decided she wanted to pursue a writing career. Rita Dove began writing plays and short stories in the early stages of her life. Because of the difficulties Ray endured when trying to find a job that allowed him to use his earned degree, Ray and his wife, Elvira, were determined to keep their children from a similar struggle. Ray worked as an elevator operator at Goodyear for a number of years before his master’s degree was put to use when he eventually became the first black chemist in the tire and rubber industry. Dove was the only one out of his ten siblings to go to college. Born in 1952 in Akron, Ohio, Dove’s parents instilled the importance of education into their daughter at a young age.
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