author
Arthur Davison Ficke
1883–1945
A refined American poet with a taste for both classical form and literary mischief, he became known for finely made sonnets and for helping stage one of the era’s most famous poetry hoaxes. His life also ranged far beyond verse, with deep interests in travel, law, and Japanese art.
3 Audiobooks
Chats on Japanese Prints
by Arthur Davison Ficke
Mr. Faust
by Arthur Davison Ficke
Spectra: A Book of Poetic Experiments
by Arthur Davison Ficke, Witter Bynner
About the author
Born in Davenport, Iowa, in 1883, Arthur Davison Ficke grew up in a well-off family and began writing early. He studied at Harvard, traveled widely, and later returned to Iowa, where he taught English and studied law before building a legal career alongside his literary one.
Ficke published many books of poetry and earned a reputation as a "poet's poet," admired especially for his sonnets and careful craftsmanship. He is also remembered for the 1916 Spectra hoax, created with Witter Bynner under a pseudonym to parody fashionable experimental verse—an episode that made him a memorable figure in American literary history.
His interests were broader than poetry alone: he was also a playwright and a serious student of Japanese art. He served in the U.S. Army during World War I and continued writing for the rest of his life, dying in 1945.