He’s been called a rebel, a literary rockstar. When Yevgeny Yevtushenko burst onto the Russian poetry scene in the late 1950s, his attacks on the government turned him into a hero of Soviet youth. He wrote about loneliness and love in a Communist era when leaders frowned on such expressions of emotion.
Then Yevtushenko turned his attention to Russia’s troubled soul and the need for artistic freedom. Some say he blended poetry and prose to such powerful effect, his pen helped tear down the former Soviet Union. Now Yevtushenko is 70, and living in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a place he calls the “bellybutton of world culture.” But he’s still using his poetic touch to inspire students, here in the U.S. and in Russia to stand up to leaders they don’t respect.
Guests:
Yevgeny Yevtushenko, Russian poet