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Irish poet Eavan Boland sadly passed away yesterday, aged 75.
The much-loved writer, who was a Professor of English and director of the creative writing programme at Stanford University, suffered a stroke before passing away at her Dublin home.
Eavan was one of Ireland’s best-loved poets, having been a fixture of the Leaving Cert poetry question for many years.
The acclaimed poet was known for her steadfast appreciation of the art of poetry, and particularly for her work documenting women’s lives and their role in Irish society.
President Michael D Higgins led tributes to Eavan, describing her as “one of the most insightful inner sources of Irish life, not only in life as expressed but as sensed and experienced”.
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“Over the years, through her poetry, critical work and teaching she displayed an extraordinary ability to invoke Irish landscapes, myth and everyday experience. She became one of the pre-eminent voices in Irish literature, noted for the high standard she sought and achieved,” he continued.
“The revealing of a hidden Ireland, in terms of what was suffered, neglected, evaded, given insufficient credit, is a part of her achievement.”
An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar also paid tribute to the legendary poet.
Taking to Twitter, he wrote: “Very sorry to hear Eavan Boland has died. One of our best & boldest poets, someone whose work showed a remarkable sympathy & warmth.”
“She documented the lives of women in history & culture & explored how the difficult truth about the past can help us make sense of the present.”