His early poetic inspiration developed while in Micháleshik, influenced by his wartime struggles, the death of his eldest brother, and his near-death visions caused by the Spanish flu.

[4] As a teenager, he moved with a cousin to New York City's Lower East Side where he lived and worked for decades.

In 1932, he was expelled from the group for publishing his first book, a poetic drama with erotic themes, titled Dray shvester (Yiddish: דרײַ שװעסטער; "Three sisters").

[5] Beginning in 1944, he started writing in more universal themes, notably with his book Inmitn tog (Yiddish: אינמיטן טאָג; "Midday") in 1954.

He also began publishing frequently in The Atlantic Monthly, The New York Times, and Poet Lore, alongside some other English publications.

His works have been featured in 21 languages, including French, Greek, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Kannada, and Lithuanian.