David Harsent

David Harsent is a British poet who won the Griffin Poetry Prize for an International poet in 2012 for Night. He is one of Britain's most distinguished contemporary poets, having also won the Forward Prize, the Costa Poetry Award, and many other awards. Harsent is a prolific poet whose work is known for its dark intensity, its use of violent imagery, and its exploration of myth, the unconscious, and the erotic. Night is a collection meditating on violence and vulnerability in the modern world. He has also written extensively for opera libretti, collaborating with composers including Harrison Birtwistle. Harsent was born in Devon and has published over a dozen collections of poetry. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and a professor of creative writing.