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Joy Harjo Family
Joy Harjo was born "Joy Foster" in Tulsa, Oklahoma 1951 to parents Allen W. Foster (who was Muscogee) and Wynema Barker Foster (who was Cherokee and European-American). Harjo's father came from a long line of respected warriors in the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and Harjo chose to take her paternal grandmother's name. Harjo's great-great grandfather was a famous warrior who fought against Andrew Jackson in the Red Stick War in the 1800s. Harjo's mother was a waitress as well as a musician. Other artists in her family included her aunt and grandmother, who were very influential in Harjo's own creativity. Harjo did not know any poets, but wrote her first poem in 8th grade.
Fig. 1 - Joy Harjo, a musician as well as a poet, performs on stage with a saxophone.
Despite Joy Harjo's love of creativity and explorations of childhood in her work, her childhood was tumultuous. She recounts tales of her father's violent behavior and alcoholism in her autobiography, leading to a divorce between her parents. Shortly after her parents' divorce, her mother married another abusive man, and Harjo became afraid to speak aloud. She recounts memories of schoolteachers threatening to write home to her parents about her silence in the classroom, but states that she was terrified to speak. She turned to painting at this time to express herself more fully.
Joy Harjo Biography
When Joy Harjo was sixteen she began attending the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico. This gave her an opportunity to leave home and this is where she began to change how Native American art is presented in the US. After high school, Harjo majored in creative writing at the University of New Mexico. During this time, she was influenced by other Native American poets, including Leslie Marmon Silko and Simon J. Ortiz. At the age of 24, she published her first book of nine poems, The Last Song (1975). After completing her undergraduate degree, she went on to attend the Iowa Writer's Workshop, where she got her MFA.
Fig. 2 - Joy Harjo was the first Native American to hold the position of Poet Laureate of the United States.
In 1979, Harjo published her first full-length poetry collection, What Moon Drove Me to This? Harjo has won many awards from her work, but at this time she began writing in earnest and has since published quite a few books of poetry, along with music albums, memoirs, children's books, and plays. Harjo became Poet Laureate of the United States in 2019, and remains in this position in 2022.
Joy Harjo has two children whom she parented as a single mother. Her son, Phil Dayn was born in 1969. Harjo met Phil Dayn's father at the Institute of American Indian Arts, and the couple only dated for two years. In 1972, she met writer Simon Ortiz of the Acoma Pueblo Tribe, and in 1973 the two had their daughter, Rainy Dawn. Harjo did not marry either of these men, and is now married to Owen Chopoksa Sapulpa, serving as stepmother to his children. Harjo and her husband now live in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and she serves as a chancellor for the Academy of American Poets, is the first Artist-in-Residence for Tulsa's Bob Dylan Center, and is the Board of Directors Chair of the Native Arts and Cultures Foundation.
It is popular amongst poets just beginning their career in poetry to publish short books or "chapbooks" of 15-30 pages. This is a way to debut poetry without having a hard launch or committing oneself to an entire collection (between 65-110 pages). Joy Harjo published The Last Song as her introductory poetry collection, but it was technically a chapbook due to its short nature.
Joy Harjo Books
Joy Harjo has written nine collections of poetry, two children's books, two memoirs, music albums, and plays. Below, a list of these works and their various genres are included, beginning with the poetry collections for which she is so famous. This list is organized by genre and acts as a quick guide to her writing and music. The chart below also includes several awards she won for each of her works, but is by no means a comprehensive list.
| Genre | Title | Year | Publisher | Select Awards by Work |
| Poetry Collections | What Moon Drove Me to This? | 1979 | Reed Books | |
| Remember | 1981 | Strawberry Press | ||
| She Had Some Horses | 1983 | Thunder's Mouth Press | ||
| In Mad Love and War | 1990 | Wesleyan University Press | ||
| The Woman Who Fell From the Sky | 1994 | W. W. Norton & Company | ||
| A Map to the Next World | 2000 | |||
| How We Became Human: New and Selected Poems 1975-2002 | 2004 | |||
| Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings | 2015 | Shortlisted for the 2016 Griffin Poetry Prize | ||
| An American Sunrise | 2019 | Oklahoma Book Award | ||
| Memoirs | Crazy Brave: A Memoir | 2012 | W. W. Norton & Company | PEN USA Literary Award in Creative Nonfiction, American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation |
| Poet Warrior | 2021 | |||
| Children's Books | The Good Luck Cat | 2000 | Harcourt Children's Books; 1st edition | |
| For a Girl Becoming | 2009 | Arizona Press | ||
| Plays | Wings of Night Sky, Wings of Morning Light: A Play by Joy Harjo and a Circle of Responses | 2019 | Wesleyan University Press | |
| Solo Album Discography | Letter from the End of the Twentieth Century, By Joy Harjo and Poetic Justice | 2003 | Mekko Productions, Inc. | |
| Native Joy For Real | 2004 | |||
| She Had Some Horses, Spoken Word | 2006 | |||
| Winding Through the Milky Way | 2008 | |||
| Red Dreams, A Trail Beyond Tears | 2010 | Indian Summer Music Award for Best Contemporary Instrumental, for “Rainbow Gratitude” | ||
| This America | 2011 | |||
| I Pray for My Enemies | 2021 | |||
| Other | Secrets From the Center of the World | 1989 | Arizona Press | |
| When the Song of the World Was Subdued Our Light Came Through, Joy Harjo as Executive Editor | 2021 | W. W. Norton & Company | PEN Oakland 2021 Josephine Miles Award, 31st Annual Reading the West Book Award for Poetry |
Joy Harjo Poems
Joy Harjo has many famous poems exploring the themes of race in America, family, love, the natural world and Indigenous cultures in the US. Below, five of her most famous poems are listed. Harjo's most famous poem is "An American Sunrise" the eponymous poem of her collection An American Sunrise.
When interpreting poetry, first see what tense the author is writing in. If the poem uses the word "you" or directly speaks to the reader, it is most frequently written in second person, which can create intimacy between the author and the reader. Use of the second person in lyric poetry is becoming more popular as poetry picks up steam in pop culture.
| Title | Year | Publication Info | Description |
| "Remember" | 1983 | She Had Some Horses, W. W. Norton & Company | The poem "Remember" by Joy Harjo is a poem directed towards the reader, written in second person. The poem concentrates on the universal truths that come with living on earth, reminding the reader to stay connected to the earth, their ancestry, and slow down to take stock of the way they live. |
| "We Must Call A Meeting" | 1990 | In Mad Love and War, Wesleyan University Press | This poem uses references to Harjo's own life and indigenous culture to discuss the state of the world and the ways in which we, as a culture, need to meet to discuss what is going on in the world and how to prevent the violence ocurring. |
| "Praise the Rain" | 2015 | Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings, W. W. Norton & Company | "Praise the Rain" is a gratitude poem about nature and humanity's place within it. This poem concentrates on being grateful for the good as well as the bad, directing the reader to praise both the easy things and the hard things. |
| "For Calling the Spirit Back From Wandering the Earth in Its Human Feet" | 2015 | Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings, W. W. Norton & Company | "For Calling the Spirit Back From Wandering the Earth in Its Human Feet" is a very famous poem by Joy Harjo. The poem is, more or less, an intensive and beautiful advice column for remaining grounded, yet true to oneself. This poem is another that is directed towards the reader with the use of the second person. |
| "Break My Heart" | 2019 | An American Sunrise W. W. Norton & Company | "Break My Heart" is a lyric poem about love and the ways in which it comes and goes. The poem is not only about romantic love, however, it has a concentration on history, past, present, and future. It comments on political issues such as law enforcement as well as intimate concerns, like relationships. |
Joy Harjo Quotes
Joy Harjo is famous for many of her quotations surrounding the self and the universal nature of things. She also commonly comments on her Indigenous heritage and is an activist for Indigenous populations living in the United States, both past and present.
There is no poetry where there are no mistakes.1
This quotation by Joy Harjo outlines her view on writing. Stating that there is no flawless or perfect poetry can make poetry seem more accessible to the everyday person. Harjo is an advocate for poetry being accessible to all persons, and this quotation illustrates that she believes poetry and poetry writing take place in the liminal space where mistakes and learning take place.
It's possible to understand the world from studying a leaf. You can comprehend the laws of aerodynamics, mathematics, poetry and biology through the complex beauty of such a perfect structure.It's also possible to travel the whole globe and learn nothing.2
This quotation expresses Harjo's beliefs about learning and spirituality. Harjo believes that one can learn all they need to about the world simply by observing and existing in its natural state. Nature gives us what we need to be fully ourselves and the intelligent beings that we are. That being said, if one is not open to such learning or closes their eyes to it, one may travel the earth learning nothing of this intuitive and natural knowledge.
I could hear my abandoned dreams making a racket in my soul. 3
This quotation, from Harjo's memoir Crazy Brave describes the feeling of unfulfillment that comes from leaving dreams unsung. Harjo was able to set out on her own to create art and artistry, and she did not let life circumstances, or any person, hold her back. This quotation is a quintessential look into who Harjo is and what she stands for.
Joy Harjo - Key Takeaways
- Joy Harjo is a Native American poet, artist, and musician who is a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation in the United States.
- Harjo is the Poet Laureate of the United States, and is the first Native American Poet Laureate, and only the second to hold the position as an incumbent for three terms in a row.
- Harjo has nine major poetry collections, and is an activist in her work for Indigenous peoples in the United States.
- Joy Harjo writes about ancestry, nature, love, loss, mysticism and Indigenous rights and cultures.
1 The Sun, Joy Harjo 2004.
2 The Woman Who Fell From the Sky: Poems, Joy Harjo 1994.
3 Crazy Brave: A Memoir, Joy Harjo 2015.
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Frequently Asked Questions about Joy Harjo
Who is Joy Harjo?
Joy Harjo is Native American poet, artist, and musician who is a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation in the United States.
What is Joy Harjo's most famous poem?
Joy Harjo's most famous poem is "An American Sunrise".
What does Joy Harjo write about?
Joy Harjo writes about ancestry, nature, love, loss, mysticism and Indigenous rights and cultures.
What does the poem "Remember" by Joy Harjo mean?
The poem "Remember" by Joy Harjo is a poem directed towards the reader, written in second person. The poem concentrates on the universal truths that come with living on earth, reminding the reader to stay connected to the earth, their ancestry, and slow down and take stock of the way they live.
How old is Joy Harjo?
Joy Harjo is 71 years old as of May 9, 2022.
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