For her 2004 collection of poems entitled American Smooth, American poet Rita Dove draws on recent events in her life. A lightening-induced house fire and an interest in ballroom dancing provide subject matter for several of the entries in this volume. In fact, the collection’s title is defined within the prefatory pages as a special variation of this partnered art form:
A form of ballroom dancing derived from the traditional Standard dances (e.g., Waltz, Fox Trot, Tango), in which the partners are free to release each other from the closed embrace and dance without any physical contact, thus permitting improvisation and individual expression.
However, interwoven within the pervading dance motif are topics Dove has visited in her previous poetry, such as artistic creativity, love, loneliness, personal achievement, and recognition for the accomplishments of the...
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Citation: Donohue, Cecilia. "American Smooth". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 24 May 2005 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=16818, accessed 05 December 2025.]
