Last Thursday I went to the poetry slam at Brewer book store and was surprised to see how many people from our class were waiting to read their poems. I really was excited to see how many people came and enjoyed watching both classmates and others volunteer to read their poetry in front of so many people they did not know. I also liked how many different styles of poetry I had the chance to see. The girl who won the contest was absolutely amazing at reading her chosen poetry. You could tell that she had so much feeling for what she was reading. It was a good example of the power that poetry has to effect people as the words she read were truly moving to her as well as the audience. Although she did not write the poems she read I was glad that the judges decided to award her first prize as she demonstrated what good poetry can do for people.
Aside from this I also really liked hearing poems that had been workshopped in class by my groupmates Kevin and Craig. Before both of them read I knew which poems they were going to present as in class we had discussed which poems of ours were our favorites. I though both of my group mates and Jess did an excellent job reading and I give them a lot of credit for being willing to go up and read their work in front of people. I was also impressed by many of the other contestants and enjoyed one poem by a younger girl which compared music and nature. If there was another poetry slam I would definitely go.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Workshop Comments
First off, I wanted to say thanks for all the feedback I got during workshop. You guys gave me really helpful and really positive comments. I was kind of apprehensive about my assignment 10 poems because I know they have really heavy subject matter, and I wasn’t sure how they’d come across to everyone else. I was really worried about my Beauty and the Beast poem especially cause I didn’t want it to look like I was poking fun at domestic abuse or making light of such a heavy topic.
As I was going through the comments that you guys gave me, I realized I left something out on Tuesday. I forgot to mention that I originally wanted my first poem to be ambigous. I wanted it to be unclear whether or not the person speaking was breathing a sigh of relief at having escaped her abusive relationship and is standing before the sea reflecting on it, or whether she’s on the brink of commiting suicide by throwing herself into the sea. I wanted it to go either way, and I forgot to ask you all Tuesday if you guys think the villanelle accomplishes that. Let me know what you think! Thanks!
--Candice
As I was going through the comments that you guys gave me, I realized I left something out on Tuesday. I forgot to mention that I originally wanted my first poem to be ambigous. I wanted it to be unclear whether or not the person speaking was breathing a sigh of relief at having escaped her abusive relationship and is standing before the sea reflecting on it, or whether she’s on the brink of commiting suicide by throwing herself into the sea. I wanted it to go either way, and I forgot to ask you all Tuesday if you guys think the villanelle accomplishes that. Let me know what you think! Thanks!
--Candice
Last Class
I can't believe today is the last class! This year has flown by so fast. I was really impressed with the tuesday workshop group. I loved Craig's poem with the Beatles references. I thought it was really clever. I also really liked Frank's poem about his grandfather. I thought his imagery was beautiful and the description was amazing. Overall, great job guys I was really impressed with everyone's poems for the tuesday workshop. I feel like as a class we have all improved so much this semester. I have started writing my Ars Poetica, and I am struggling quite a bit with it. I guess I feel like I don't really know yet, what I think should or shouldn't be in a poem. It seems to be coming together a little bit, but I feel like I am writing an essay rather than a poem. I feel like my Ars Poetica is really stiff and awkward sounding and while I try to say what I think should be in a good poem, I am definitely not writing a poem that in any way exemplifies the characteristics that I am describing in it. I don't know if anyone else is struggling with this or not too, but I guess I will just keep trying at it, and hope it comes out okay. See you all in class today for the last day!!
Here I Am Again
So I was hoping other people would be posting so there wouldn't be two posts by me one after another but....no one did. Anyway, I can't believe today is our last class! I also can't believe after next week I'll be half way done with college....what is going on. Frank, Candice, Jess, and any other seniors I can't begin to try to understand how YOU ALL must be feeling right now.
I've been working on my ars poetica...it's going fairly well; slowly, but it's still coming along nonetheless. I've never put my thought into like reasons why I revise my work, or my own methods of writing, I just sort of do. This is the first assignment I've ever had that forces me to write out WHY I am doing what I am doing, and like write out my thought process of what I am doing or what I do when I write. It's interesting and will probably take me a lot longer to finish this work than it usually will take me. I'm glad we read a variety of ars poeticas these past few weeks in class so that I have a better idea about what mine should look like, or at least what it should do.
I'm enjoying ending the class with a full class work shop this week. It's cool to see how people's poems and styles have writing have changed throughout this semester. Some people have made more improvements than others, but I've enjoyed the first half of the class's work so far. I really liked Taylor's poem... Usually when people write about a topic like young college students drinking and using marijuana, people just find it funny and laugh and giggle because it's all that forbidden fruit crap. I think Taylor was trying to accomplish something different with this poem, and I got that! His metaphors and images were cool, he played with words a lot which I liked, and I think we gave him good feedback for him to make the poem even better and longer.
I liked Frank's poem too about the little boy visiting his sick grandfather after pretending he himself was sick and therefore couldn't go to school. It makes me wonder if his mom knew he was faking and so wanted to teach him a lesson and brought him to his grandfathers house, so that even if he didn't understand it then, he'd understand it later in life. I'm not sure if a child of the age of nine or ten would be able to embody that guilt or understand that lesson, but still, the poem was very powerful and I loved all the images!
So yeah, I think that's it, and I'm also pretty sure this is my last blog so...it's been great! Everyone have a great summer, and to the seniors, have a great senior week and graduation and good luck in life I guess!! Maybe our class should keep this blog going to keep in touch haha!
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Poetry Slam
I also forgot to post this after the slam last Thursday...so now I will be posting two blogs...
Props to our class for placing 3/4 places at the Poetry Slam!!! I honestly wasn't expecting to see any of our class participating but I was pleasantly surprised when Craig Kevin and Jess all had the guts to show up there and read their work. I really loved all three of Jess' poems about the bathroom. When I read them in class I thought they were witty and fun and very well written and apparently so did the audience and judges. Kevin got a laugh out of the audience just like he did out of our workshop group when he read the poem about his sweetheart. Another really fun poem. And finally, Craig... Well, I've always been impressed with the way he writes his poems, and for someone in an intro level class I think he writes poems very well. It was my first time hearing the poem about the Beatles and I really enjoyed that one, and I also enjoyed it in the full class work shop. Poems like that where I have to think and don't really get it at first usually frustrate me, but this time I just liked hearing how he read his own work, it made me think about the poem in the way he wanted people to think about it, so I understood it a lot better.
Besides our class, I was impressed with some of the work from the other students. I'm not sure if they were all in a class together where they were assigned to write poems, or just did it as a hobby, but I found that they were all somewhat similar. I was really impressed with Chelsea. She was the one that wrote the poem about Stainglass Eyes. I know Chelsea because she is on the volleyball team here with my roommate. Everyone describes her as quiet and I've always known her to keep to herself, so you can imagine my surprise as she got up there and read her poem with such intensity. She also had a lot of attitude when reading, kind of like, "you don't know me, fuck off" and it was a side of her I never saw. I guess the saying, "Never judge a book by it's cover" is true here, because I would have never expected that out of her. I also really enjoyed that one guy who's poem was kind of like a rap. I really felt like that poem came from the heart, that he was writing from personal experience, about something that really hurts and bothers him. I was SO impressed that he was able to recite the whole thing by memory. The poem sounded more like a song, but I think that's what songs are; poetry with a beat. I heard him say after that he has put a beat to it so I think that's really cool that on his free time he likes to write and make poetry and music. I'd be really interested to hear the full version of the song. I was surprised that both people did not place, because I thought their work was very original and thought provoking.
And as for the winner, Mwelwa...she has always impressed me as a student. She's a very involved young woman and is also very kind and outgoing. Her performance was very impressive although it was unclear to me whether or not she was reading her own work, or reading work BY someone who inspires her. If she wasn't reading her own work it's a little frustrating that she got first place because I thought the contestants were supposed to be reading work they've produced. But still, her performance was impressive and moving and gave me chills at many times. I thought it was brave of her to read a piece of work on race, something that still is uncomfortable for some people. I am taking a class on the Civil Rights Movement right now as I've mentioned before so I feel so much more empowered after taking that class when I hear of people overcoming the struggles of race so I really enjoyed listening to her read.
Now I kind of wish that I had the guts to perform. I still am uncomfortable with a lot of my work, even in class work shops so I got really nervous at the opportunity to perform in front of people I didn't know. But the whole atmosphere was very warm and inviting so I am considering doing it next year!!
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Poetry Slam
I totally forgot to post this after the Poetry Slam. I apologize, I am a poor excuse for a poet. My forgetfulness aside, I thought that the Poetry Slam was a pretty good time. Eight contestants, sweet ass rhymes, could a better time be had? I think not. The atmosphere was pretty laid back and I was pretty surprised with how many people showed up to support their respective slammers. The crowd was pretty silent, not deathly quiet though, but everyone seemed to be enjoying the poetry to be had. They were certainly not eager to flee from the scene, which was a nice gesture, considering I was convinced to participate in the slam only moments before it began.
Everyone's poetry was pretty good. I wish that kid, the one who did the rap thing without any music, had brought a boom-box or something with him, if only for the pure aesthetic bliss that I would have experienced as he inserted a mix tape and struck a pose. Regrettably, this did not happen. He did however, employ slant rhymes quite effectively throughout the course of his poem (the content of which I, unfortunately, cannot remember beyond the fact he swore a few times about his "baby"). The first person to read whose name, like most of the others, has escaped me, seemed to be very into that dark, menacing type poetry that speaks a lot about loneliness and starlight. He was a bit timid, so I wish he had felt more confident in his poems, but I give him kudos for just going up there and reading stuff he had written himself. Original work is, in my opinion, much preferred to reading someone else's. Reading someone else's poetry in a competition feels dishonest to me, as if you are hiding behind someone else's emotion. There is no real feeling there, only the simulation. My Techniques peeps and I cleaned up spots 4 through 2 in the judging, so that was pretty exciting. Jess and Kevin gave some pretty ballin' performances, and I was happy to come in alongside them as representatives of the Poetical Juggernaut that is, Techinques of Poetry 242.
Everyone's poetry was pretty good. I wish that kid, the one who did the rap thing without any music, had brought a boom-box or something with him, if only for the pure aesthetic bliss that I would have experienced as he inserted a mix tape and struck a pose. Regrettably, this did not happen. He did however, employ slant rhymes quite effectively throughout the course of his poem (the content of which I, unfortunately, cannot remember beyond the fact he swore a few times about his "baby"). The first person to read whose name, like most of the others, has escaped me, seemed to be very into that dark, menacing type poetry that speaks a lot about loneliness and starlight. He was a bit timid, so I wish he had felt more confident in his poems, but I give him kudos for just going up there and reading stuff he had written himself. Original work is, in my opinion, much preferred to reading someone else's. Reading someone else's poetry in a competition feels dishonest to me, as if you are hiding behind someone else's emotion. There is no real feeling there, only the simulation. My Techniques peeps and I cleaned up spots 4 through 2 in the judging, so that was pretty exciting. Jess and Kevin gave some pretty ballin' performances, and I was happy to come in alongside them as representatives of the Poetical Juggernaut that is, Techinques of Poetry 242.
Poetry Slam
I would like to talk about the poetry slam last Thursday. First my hats off to everyone who performed, I couldn't muster up the courage to get up there and read one of my own pieces and have that much more respect for everyone who did.
The first poem I would like to talk about is Jess and her toilet poems. I was already familiar with them, however I don't know if I ever heard you read them in class. I enjoyed listening to your obvious sense of humor that went into them and loved seeing the reactions of the crowd members. You had people laughing with your lines starting with " It is not..." than finishing it with "but it..." This technique gave the audience time to think about what you were saying and you could see how people would think about it than understand what part of the bathroom you were talking about and laugh. Great Job.
The next poets I would like to talk about are Craig, and Kevin. Hearing your poems made me regret not being in your groups for workshop. You guys both had incredible sense of humor and a talent for playing around with your words. Craig I enjoyed your poem that referenced the Beatles. I was a huge fan and you were very clever in the way you made the listener think about what Beatles line you were referring to. Kevin, you read your poem perfectly for the message it was portraying. While your girlfriend seemed so evil in her ways, you still did a great job at making the audience laugh and convincing them nothing really is ever her fault.
Lastly I would like to talk about two of the poets who were more intense. I forget the guys name but the poet who had memorized his work also really impressed me. I did not agree with the amount of swear words in his poem, some seemed unnecessary to me, however he read with great passion and it sucked the listener in. It wasn't all about the words of his poem but more about the way he said it. It had an incredible flow almost like a rap and alot of time was obviously spent on it. And, to Welwha I thought she did an amazing job. I had never heard the Tupac poems she read however I did no he was a poet. While she read I almost felt that it could have been Tupac himself up there. She read his work like it was her own and it was very powerful. She had a talent at making specific lines stand out with the tones of her voice. She used different volumes to do this and did not hold back from expressing her self. The poems she picked seemed to be about issues she felt and it was incredible to see her perform at that level.
Thanks, TAd
The first poem I would like to talk about is Jess and her toilet poems. I was already familiar with them, however I don't know if I ever heard you read them in class. I enjoyed listening to your obvious sense of humor that went into them and loved seeing the reactions of the crowd members. You had people laughing with your lines starting with " It is not..." than finishing it with "but it..." This technique gave the audience time to think about what you were saying and you could see how people would think about it than understand what part of the bathroom you were talking about and laugh. Great Job.
The next poets I would like to talk about are Craig, and Kevin. Hearing your poems made me regret not being in your groups for workshop. You guys both had incredible sense of humor and a talent for playing around with your words. Craig I enjoyed your poem that referenced the Beatles. I was a huge fan and you were very clever in the way you made the listener think about what Beatles line you were referring to. Kevin, you read your poem perfectly for the message it was portraying. While your girlfriend seemed so evil in her ways, you still did a great job at making the audience laugh and convincing them nothing really is ever her fault.
Lastly I would like to talk about two of the poets who were more intense. I forget the guys name but the poet who had memorized his work also really impressed me. I did not agree with the amount of swear words in his poem, some seemed unnecessary to me, however he read with great passion and it sucked the listener in. It wasn't all about the words of his poem but more about the way he said it. It had an incredible flow almost like a rap and alot of time was obviously spent on it. And, to Welwha I thought she did an amazing job. I had never heard the Tupac poems she read however I did no he was a poet. While she read I almost felt that it could have been Tupac himself up there. She read his work like it was her own and it was very powerful. She had a talent at making specific lines stand out with the tones of her voice. She used different volumes to do this and did not hold back from expressing her self. The poems she picked seemed to be about issues she felt and it was incredible to see her perform at that level.
Thanks, TAd
Marianne Moore
I really liked the poems assigned for last Thursday’s class! A couple of them were familiar. Marianne Moore’s “Poetry” was one of the poems I remembered reading in another class. However, I was happy to be exposed to it again… I think it’s a great poem and reading it now with an understanding of what an ars poetica is made me appreciate and understand the poem a bit more.
One of the things I remember most about “Poetry” is its striking first phrase: “I, too, dislike it.” This statement seems ironic for a variety of reasons. Firstly, this poem is entitled “Poetry,” so you would think that the person writing it would like poetry. Secondly, if the writer does not like poetry, why is she interested in writing it? And thirdly, this statement seems to be refuted by the end of the poem as the writer describes what poetry is to her and the last phrase of the work is “you are interested in poetry.” However, I really like that the poet starts out her ars poetica with a strong statement that gets the reader thinking. It sets Moore’s poem apart from all other ars poeticas in a unique way.
The next thing I enjoy about Moore’s poem is the interesting line breaks. They seem to fall in kind of awkward places, but they really keep the poem interesting and make it more fun to read. I like how the lines kind of zig zag across the page as well. This is not a typical metered and rhymed, nicely lined up poem, which I really like. It kind of demonstrates itself the uniqueness that Moore is encouraging in poetry through her ars poetica.
Lastly, I want to comment on the images in the poem. I love how Moore uses animal images (a bat, an elephant, a wild horse, a flea, a wolf) to communicate her thoughts. It really paints a cool picture in my mind that I usually would not associate with the concept of how to write a good poem. She crams all of these animals into 5 short lines of the poem, but does so powerfully. Her later mention of “imaginary gardens with real toads in them” is cool too, and connects back to the other creatures mentioned earlier in the poem. What she is saying comes alive through the animal images she chooses to use.
Oh, and one more thing… I love how Moore compares poetry to other types of literature, like business documents and school books. She comments on how these forms of literature are important, but they are not really pieces of writing that anyone forms any type of emotional attachment with, as they would with poetry. As she had said earlier in the poem, “we/do not admire what/we cannot understand.” When I think about reading school books or business documents (things that I sometimes don’t understand and certainly don’t emotionally connect with), the value that poetry gains through its ability to be understood and related to by everyone who reads it becomes more obvious.
Overall, I thought Moore’s poem was great and of all the ars poeticas we have read throughout the semester, this is certainly one of my favorites! Maybe I can somehow employ some of the ideas presented by Moore in my own ars poetica… I guess we’ll see!
See you all in class!
One of the things I remember most about “Poetry” is its striking first phrase: “I, too, dislike it.” This statement seems ironic for a variety of reasons. Firstly, this poem is entitled “Poetry,” so you would think that the person writing it would like poetry. Secondly, if the writer does not like poetry, why is she interested in writing it? And thirdly, this statement seems to be refuted by the end of the poem as the writer describes what poetry is to her and the last phrase of the work is “you are interested in poetry.” However, I really like that the poet starts out her ars poetica with a strong statement that gets the reader thinking. It sets Moore’s poem apart from all other ars poeticas in a unique way.
The next thing I enjoy about Moore’s poem is the interesting line breaks. They seem to fall in kind of awkward places, but they really keep the poem interesting and make it more fun to read. I like how the lines kind of zig zag across the page as well. This is not a typical metered and rhymed, nicely lined up poem, which I really like. It kind of demonstrates itself the uniqueness that Moore is encouraging in poetry through her ars poetica.
Lastly, I want to comment on the images in the poem. I love how Moore uses animal images (a bat, an elephant, a wild horse, a flea, a wolf) to communicate her thoughts. It really paints a cool picture in my mind that I usually would not associate with the concept of how to write a good poem. She crams all of these animals into 5 short lines of the poem, but does so powerfully. Her later mention of “imaginary gardens with real toads in them” is cool too, and connects back to the other creatures mentioned earlier in the poem. What she is saying comes alive through the animal images she chooses to use.
Oh, and one more thing… I love how Moore compares poetry to other types of literature, like business documents and school books. She comments on how these forms of literature are important, but they are not really pieces of writing that anyone forms any type of emotional attachment with, as they would with poetry. As she had said earlier in the poem, “we/do not admire what/we cannot understand.” When I think about reading school books or business documents (things that I sometimes don’t understand and certainly don’t emotionally connect with), the value that poetry gains through its ability to be understood and related to by everyone who reads it becomes more obvious.
Overall, I thought Moore’s poem was great and of all the ars poeticas we have read throughout the semester, this is certainly one of my favorites! Maybe I can somehow employ some of the ideas presented by Moore in my own ars poetica… I guess we’ll see!
See you all in class!
Just shows you that being a prick, being whipped, and being obsessed with a toilet pays off...
...literally.
Well, congrats Theo! Your class must be doing something, because english242 DOMINATED that poetry slam.
I really enjoyed the laid back atmosphere, and I really wasn't nervous at all. I couldn't believe how much talent there is at St. Lawrence.
Taylor, that kid Ansel reminds me of an emo-boy version of my little sister...it was really really weird. Blond and round ... funny.
Anywho, I really enjoyed the different poems, from Jackson and Mwelwa to Chelsea and Pete.
I hope this tradition carries on to next year, it was really a cool experience.
Also, I bought a t-shirt, a Burt's Bees, and a kite.
Badass, I know.
Well, congrats Theo! Your class must be doing something, because english242 DOMINATED that poetry slam.
I really enjoyed the laid back atmosphere, and I really wasn't nervous at all. I couldn't believe how much talent there is at St. Lawrence.
Taylor, that kid Ansel reminds me of an emo-boy version of my little sister...it was really really weird. Blond and round ... funny.
Anywho, I really enjoyed the different poems, from Jackson and Mwelwa to Chelsea and Pete.
I hope this tradition carries on to next year, it was really a cool experience.
Also, I bought a t-shirt, a Burt's Bees, and a kite.
Badass, I know.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Last Week
Poetry 242
we are almost through
I have been reading poems
about how to write poems
It is a crazy thought
But don't get caught
up in the writers of our text book
because I will never be in the Norton book
I write how I want
rhyming or not
this is how I do my poetry
I am no John Ashbery
So I have been working on my ars poetica and this is something how it goes. Great, right? I really liked one of the first poems we read way back when...It mentioned something about poetry within the poem but it was not quite an ars poetica. I really liked it because of the poetry name drop. I thought, well that's interesting, why would a poet talk about poetry when he is writing it? I guess I still question that. Remeber how I said that I also enjoyed wrting rhyming poems more than reading them. I would also rather read an ars poetica rather than write one.
Our Last Class Workshops
Inbetween working on my Assignment 11 I have also have read all of the poems for this week. We really are a great class and so creative. I would liek to do a group exercise again where we all contribute to a poem. With so many different ideas, we could create a masterpiece, or could we?
Two poems that stuck out for me were the poems of each Jess. Venezia, your "You Left" poem was line for line right on. At least I felt that this was very true as to what girls do and think when involved in a relationship. The poem really moved well and each stanza was exciting to see what the character was thinking. (It is really funny, because I saw Brian's name n top of his poem which was behind Jess' in my pile and my brain trigered that I was reading this poem as Brian's. i was shocked and wondered hwo he did this is a the mind of a girl. haha)
Young, your poem was so creative. It is funny that I didn't even question the speakers of the poem. We can talk more about this in workshop but I do not know what you did to direct this message. It was so clear that it was a child, a wife, and a hubby. So good!
See y'all in class.
we are almost through
I have been reading poems
about how to write poems
It is a crazy thought
But don't get caught
up in the writers of our text book
because I will never be in the Norton book
I write how I want
rhyming or not
this is how I do my poetry
I am no John Ashbery
So I have been working on my ars poetica and this is something how it goes. Great, right? I really liked one of the first poems we read way back when...It mentioned something about poetry within the poem but it was not quite an ars poetica. I really liked it because of the poetry name drop. I thought, well that's interesting, why would a poet talk about poetry when he is writing it? I guess I still question that. Remeber how I said that I also enjoyed wrting rhyming poems more than reading them. I would also rather read an ars poetica rather than write one.
Our Last Class Workshops
Inbetween working on my Assignment 11 I have also have read all of the poems for this week. We really are a great class and so creative. I would liek to do a group exercise again where we all contribute to a poem. With so many different ideas, we could create a masterpiece, or could we?
Two poems that stuck out for me were the poems of each Jess. Venezia, your "You Left" poem was line for line right on. At least I felt that this was very true as to what girls do and think when involved in a relationship. The poem really moved well and each stanza was exciting to see what the character was thinking. (It is really funny, because I saw Brian's name n top of his poem which was behind Jess' in my pile and my brain trigered that I was reading this poem as Brian's. i was shocked and wondered hwo he did this is a the mind of a girl. haha)
Young, your poem was so creative. It is funny that I didn't even question the speakers of the poem. We can talk more about this in workshop but I do not know what you did to direct this message. It was so clear that it was a child, a wife, and a hubby. So good!
See y'all in class.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Proof That Class Pays Off
I just got back from the Brewer Bookstore Poetry Slam and am the proud owner of a 3rd place certificate! Our class nearly swept the awards, getting 4th (Jess Y), 3rd, and 2nd place (Craig), so a great job goes out to all that entered! And many thanks to all those who showed up and supported. I also have to thank my workshop group for giving me the positive feedback that encouraged me to actually go up there and read my poem. I chose to read my assignment #9, and was happy to see that it actually got a few chuckles out of the crowd. Both Jess Young and Craig did an awesome job of performing there pieces as well!
It was an awesome experience that I almost didn't do, but I am sure glad I did do it. I think that it's a really neat idea for an event, and that continuing the effort would be awesome. Something like a Poetry Slam at least once a semester could give students an awesome opportunity to present some of the poems they've been working hard on, and there's few better feelings than seeing the poem you've worked so hard on being appreciated by others. I'm sure that the more and more slams there are, more and more people will show up and participate.
It was an awesome experience that I almost didn't do, but I am sure glad I did do it. I think that it's a really neat idea for an event, and that continuing the effort would be awesome. Something like a Poetry Slam at least once a semester could give students an awesome opportunity to present some of the poems they've been working hard on, and there's few better feelings than seeing the poem you've worked so hard on being appreciated by others. I'm sure that the more and more slams there are, more and more people will show up and participate.
Out of the all the readings for Thursday's class, I just wanted to say that I liked John Ashbery's Paradoxes and Oxymorons and Langston Hughes's Theme for English B the most. John Ashbery's struck me becaus it's in the second person narrative for most of it, so it's actively engaging the reader in the poem instead of just preaching. And what I liked about the poem by Langston Hughes was that it's so simple and it's about identity and humanity. I liked it's message that yes, we are all different, not necessarily because of race or age or anything but because of our different experiences, but that we are all still one, we are all still americans or just people in general, and that should be enough to connect us. I also like that Langston Hughes talks about how what's true for a person may not necssarily apply or be true for somebody else, and i thought that was a really interesting philosophical point to make. I really enjoyed these readings-- they were very thought provoking!
Writing a poem about poetry
Last night I was determined to do something productive that didn't involve working on my lab report so I decided to make an attempt at my ars poetica poem assignment. I found it difficult to begin as the subject of the poem is in a way your own personal view of poetry and what effect it has on you/what meaning it has for you. I found that I really couldn't begin writing until I really though about those things and even after I developed some thoughts on these topics it still left me struggling to find an interesting and poetic way to present them. Although difficult I think that this is an excellent project for a final assignment of this class. By now we have practice writing poems and have even developed own poetic style. Also we have been exposed to many poems and many different styles of poetry. This is an excellent way to tie up what we have gained from taking this class. I didn't make it too far on my ars poetica last night but will be back at it at some point this weekend and am looking forward to challenge of distinguishing my views on poetry. On another note I am also planning on attending the Poetry slam at the bookstore today and am looking forward to seeing how it turns out. I have never been to an event like this and am not entirely sure how it is run however I am excited to hear some of my fellow students at SLU share some of their poems.
April 23rd
I really liked John Ashberry's poem, Paradoxes and Oxymorons. When I first read the title I thought it'd be a fun poem to read because paradoxes and oxymorons are fun in and of themselves whenever you come across one. I liked how this poem is not difficult to understand; and picking out the actual paradoxes and oxymorons is fun. For example, the first paradox I noticed was "You have it, but you don't have it" on the third line. One of the more interesting oxymorons was "A deeper outside thing, at the beginning of the third stanza. Ashberry was very talented to be able to combine both oxymorons and paradoxes together in one poem line after line and still have the poem flow and make sense. I find it ironic that he uses this rhetoric literary tools in order to create a poem...A lot of stuff you learn in one year of English class all tied into one.
I also liked Langston Hughe's poem, Theme for English B. As I am taking a Civil Rights course at the same time as this class, I liked coming across this poem which had to do a little bit with black struggle, as well as the poem we read a few weeks ago, about the wife who's husband lynched that young black boy. I think anyone can relate to this poem. Heck, everyone in this class should be able to...Our open ended assignments sometimes makes all of us wonder what we are supposed to be writing about. When you first hear an instructors directions, the task at hand may seem simple, yet when you actually attempt to complete the assignment, you begin to think whether or not it is at simple as you projected it to be, and then the task of writing the poem becomes a little more difficult. The young man's struggle in this poem however, has to do with the fact that not only does he wish to do well on this assignment that he does not think is that simple, but he also struggles with the issue of being African American. He writes about how race affects his writing, because of the environment he is in and what that causes him to write about. I thought it was all very interesting.
I also liked Langston Hughe's poem, Theme for English B. As I am taking a Civil Rights course at the same time as this class, I liked coming across this poem which had to do a little bit with black struggle, as well as the poem we read a few weeks ago, about the wife who's husband lynched that young black boy. I think anyone can relate to this poem. Heck, everyone in this class should be able to...Our open ended assignments sometimes makes all of us wonder what we are supposed to be writing about. When you first hear an instructors directions, the task at hand may seem simple, yet when you actually attempt to complete the assignment, you begin to think whether or not it is at simple as you projected it to be, and then the task of writing the poem becomes a little more difficult. The young man's struggle in this poem however, has to do with the fact that not only does he wish to do well on this assignment that he does not think is that simple, but he also struggles with the issue of being African American. He writes about how race affects his writing, because of the environment he is in and what that causes him to write about. I thought it was all very interesting.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Poetry Readings…
As Theo was mentioning the Poetry Slam going on at the bookstore on Thursday night, I happened to remember that besides the Pablo Neruda Poetry for Peace reading I went to this semester, I went to another poetry reading at the bookstore last semester. I know we weren’t in this class then, but it was interesting anyway, so I thought I would mention some of my thoughts.
Janice Bradbaw was the poet reading and selling her book, Universe Disturbed, during the poetry reading. It was a very relaxed setting with just a few people sitting around listening by the fireplace in the back of the bookstore. It was fun to hear the author of the poem reading her own poems and reflecting a bit on what she had written and why. Also, one of the things that I found most interesting is that Bradbaw was actually a student here at St. Lawrence. That was what initially got me interested in attending the reading. I’m glad I went!
I decided to buy Bradbaw’s book, and she signed it for me too. I got to talk to her a little bit while she was signing it for me, which was cool! Her book is a collection of poems she wrote while she was a student here. There are references to places on campus and things that wouldn’t really make sense to other people, but since we all go here, we get it! Fun! The poems are really personal, some of them seem kind of juvenile (as they should since they are the writings of a college student), but I found that I could connect with a lot of them as a college student myself. Bradbaw is somewhat of an emerging artist—it’s not like she is my favorite poet or anything, but I enjoyed reading her book and listening to her read her poetry at the bookstore. It was a fun experience!
Janice Bradbaw was the poet reading and selling her book, Universe Disturbed, during the poetry reading. It was a very relaxed setting with just a few people sitting around listening by the fireplace in the back of the bookstore. It was fun to hear the author of the poem reading her own poems and reflecting a bit on what she had written and why. Also, one of the things that I found most interesting is that Bradbaw was actually a student here at St. Lawrence. That was what initially got me interested in attending the reading. I’m glad I went!
I decided to buy Bradbaw’s book, and she signed it for me too. I got to talk to her a little bit while she was signing it for me, which was cool! Her book is a collection of poems she wrote while she was a student here. There are references to places on campus and things that wouldn’t really make sense to other people, but since we all go here, we get it! Fun! The poems are really personal, some of them seem kind of juvenile (as they should since they are the writings of a college student), but I found that I could connect with a lot of them as a college student myself. Bradbaw is somewhat of an emerging artist—it’s not like she is my favorite poet or anything, but I enjoyed reading her book and listening to her read her poetry at the bookstore. It was a fun experience!
art and oranges
I am sorry but Thomas must write for another reason. He is being so selfless in his poem "In My Craft of Sullen Art." He may not be paid to write poetry. He may not write poetry to be able to strut. He says he writes for lovers who are not even listening. How can this make him happy? Doesn't he write for himself in some way? Does it make him happy to write? Does he write poems for his loved ones? I like the poem but it also raises questions? Why wouldn't one have more purpose? His last line says,
But for the lovers, their arms
Round the griefs of the ages,
Who pay no praise or wages
Nor heed my craft or art.
Nobody is listening! How can this satisfy him? What does this say about art? I think there should be some satisfaction for the person of the process, himself. He is saying art is what....not good enough for self satisfaction or others heed? It is beautifully written and a beautiful attempt but I wonder, can one really be that selfless? Is it just an act to make good poetry and get into the Norton, and is he faking it?
I LOVE Frank O'Hara's poem, "Why I Am Not a Painter." I mention earlier in the semester that it is neat when a poet can write about poetry. I guess that is what we have been reading for the last few classes. One would think that writing about what your writing is stupid, but the authors we have read do it very well. Some have explained too much and that is hard to understand. I enjoy O'Hara's poem because it has a point and it is fun. I like that.
But for the lovers, their arms
Round the griefs of the ages,
Who pay no praise or wages
Nor heed my craft or art.
Nobody is listening! How can this satisfy him? What does this say about art? I think there should be some satisfaction for the person of the process, himself. He is saying art is what....not good enough for self satisfaction or others heed? It is beautifully written and a beautiful attempt but I wonder, can one really be that selfless? Is it just an act to make good poetry and get into the Norton, and is he faking it?
I LOVE Frank O'Hara's poem, "Why I Am Not a Painter." I mention earlier in the semester that it is neat when a poet can write about poetry. I guess that is what we have been reading for the last few classes. One would think that writing about what your writing is stupid, but the authors we have read do it very well. Some have explained too much and that is hard to understand. I enjoy O'Hara's poem because it has a point and it is fun. I like that.
Monday, April 20, 2009
More Ars Poeticas
Since we first began reading ars poeticas for class, I have found myself brainstorming and trying to come up with ideas about how to write one of my own. I go back and forth with ideas, jot things down, cross them out and come up with new ideas. It’s kind of frustrating because I am still unsure of what I am going to write about and how I am going to write the poem. I think it’s a pretty complicated concept, writing a poem about how to write a poem.
However, I have to say that I really like the ars poeticas we are reading this week, and because I feel like I can relate to them a bit more, I am feeling a little more hopeful about my own ars poetica. I really liked “In My Craft of Sullen Art” by Dylan Thomas. It is cool that this poem seems SO different from “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night”! The theme and the tone is totally different, which I really like! The imagery of his poem is not overdone, but it’s still powerful and I really like how he includes the idea that his poem is written for lovers, especially the lovers sleeping as he is writing his poetry. I love how the beginning lines “the lovers lie abed/ With all their griefs in their arms” tie in with the later lines “for the lovers, their arms/ Round the griefs of the ages.” Also, the idea that poetry is not written for fame or fortune is refreshing. It kind of communicates the idea that poetry is something everyone can enjoy, an art that everyone can try to create and share. I really like this poem. It’s my favorite of the ars poeticas that we have read so far.
I also really liked “Why I Am Not a Painter” by Frank O’Hara. I liked the dialogue he uses in the poem and the way the lines are unrhymed, giving the poem a very prose-like, story-like feeling. It has a very personal, informal tone, like the narrator is simply telling the reader what happened, which is kind of fun! I also like that O’Hara compares poetry to another form of art (painting). Making a comparison like this is somewhat common, but the way he does it is very clever. I really liked the style and techniques he used in his poem.
Overall, I think that reading these poems will definitely help me with writing my own ars poetica. The more I read, the more ideas I get. Hopefully after all my brainstorming, something great will result!
Can’t wait to discuss these poems tomorrow in class, along with Ron Silliman’s "Disappearance of the Word, Appearance of the World." See you all there!
However, I have to say that I really like the ars poeticas we are reading this week, and because I feel like I can relate to them a bit more, I am feeling a little more hopeful about my own ars poetica. I really liked “In My Craft of Sullen Art” by Dylan Thomas. It is cool that this poem seems SO different from “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night”! The theme and the tone is totally different, which I really like! The imagery of his poem is not overdone, but it’s still powerful and I really like how he includes the idea that his poem is written for lovers, especially the lovers sleeping as he is writing his poetry. I love how the beginning lines “the lovers lie abed/ With all their griefs in their arms” tie in with the later lines “for the lovers, their arms/ Round the griefs of the ages.” Also, the idea that poetry is not written for fame or fortune is refreshing. It kind of communicates the idea that poetry is something everyone can enjoy, an art that everyone can try to create and share. I really like this poem. It’s my favorite of the ars poeticas that we have read so far.
I also really liked “Why I Am Not a Painter” by Frank O’Hara. I liked the dialogue he uses in the poem and the way the lines are unrhymed, giving the poem a very prose-like, story-like feeling. It has a very personal, informal tone, like the narrator is simply telling the reader what happened, which is kind of fun! I also like that O’Hara compares poetry to another form of art (painting). Making a comparison like this is somewhat common, but the way he does it is very clever. I really liked the style and techniques he used in his poem.
Overall, I think that reading these poems will definitely help me with writing my own ars poetica. The more I read, the more ideas I get. Hopefully after all my brainstorming, something great will result!
Can’t wait to discuss these poems tomorrow in class, along with Ron Silliman’s "Disappearance of the Word, Appearance of the World." See you all there!
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Assignment 9
I just want to say that I am really impressed by my group's work on this past assignment. From the looks of other's blogs, it seems like group 1 had some great stuff as well.
It's been really great seeing everyone's poems improving, and I think that's not only a tribute to the class itself, but to our workshops. I always feel like we do give each other helpful feedback (even in the laidback picnic table setting). I was impressed by everyone's work in my group - you're all so creative!
I can't wait to read everyone's next poem, I'm kind of bummed it won't be for a week!
Have a great weekend!
~Jess Young
It's been really great seeing everyone's poems improving, and I think that's not only a tribute to the class itself, but to our workshops. I always feel like we do give each other helpful feedback (even in the laidback picnic table setting). I was impressed by everyone's work in my group - you're all so creative!
I can't wait to read everyone's next poem, I'm kind of bummed it won't be for a week!
Have a great weekend!
~Jess Young
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Assignments 9 & 10
I have to agree, assignment #9 was not only very enjoyable to read, but also very enjoyable to write. Even though most of the poems I have written for class are from the perspective of someone else, I had never really focused before on developing that narrator and revealing something about that person to the reader. It was fun to think about how my narrator would speak, and it made me use a slightly different set of word selection than what I would normally use - not to mention an entirely different thought process about events than what I would normally use. The inspiration people used for their poems was really neat to hear about as well; from historical events from the 1920's to recent breaking news, it was all in there!
As for assignment #10, I found it a lot harder to come up with something I felt was really good. It's hard enough knowing that the whole class is going to workshop it, but then also being given no parameters as to what it has to be about makes it even harder. I know I spent a good chunk of time sitting around looking for inspiration before I could even think of an idea to write about. I'm hoping what I came up with comes across as I had hoped, I guess we'll find out in class!
As for assignment #10, I found it a lot harder to come up with something I felt was really good. It's hard enough knowing that the whole class is going to workshop it, but then also being given no parameters as to what it has to be about makes it even harder. I know I spent a good chunk of time sitting around looking for inspiration before I could even think of an idea to write about. I'm hoping what I came up with comes across as I had hoped, I guess we'll find out in class!
4/16/09
I also really enjoyed Assignment number 9, for myself and for others. Candice wrote a beautiful poem about the WW2 in Nazi Germany and wrote from the perspective of someone she just saw on the news that is getting put on trial for counts of murder because he was discovered to be a prison guard in a concentration camp. It was a really cool idea. I also liked the freedom of being able to put myself in someone else's shoes while writing a poem-I got to pretend to be a little boy...I didn't have to use such intense language, but I still got the story across from a different perspective.
I also really liked the two poems we read during Tuesdays class about nature. The antedote of the Jar was really cool to read..everyone had such different interpretations of what they thought it was, and why the jar was there, and that's my favorite part of poetry; the interpretations. I feel like I am getting better at it, but the thing is, you don't really have to be good at it because as long as your back up your thought with reasons, anything can make sense, and I think that is always the goal of a good poem.
When I was home this past weekend I was able to see a poetry contest at my friends High School where AP English students shared their work. One kid wrote a beautiful poem about his girlfriend, another wrote a humorous but still very funny about the game of hockey. One girl wrote about the show, "Gossip Girl," and how she'd addicted to it. Overall I was impressed at the young talent, and I thought I'd share!
See you in class-Bridget
Assignment 9
I have to say, I really enjoyed reading everyone's poem for this weeks workshop. It was really interesting to see the different ways that everyone interpreted the same assignment. I really liked Taylor's a lot, and I thought it was impressive that he would choose to write from the point of view of someone from another gender. I think that would be a little too challenging for me at this point, but I thought he did it successfully. It was interesting to see that some people choose real life memories, and then wrote from someone else point of view. I think this also would have been an interesting challenge, because you would really have to remove yourself from the event. I found it easy to write from someone's point of view that was removed from me, but i think I would have found this assignment even more challenging if i had attempted to write it from the point of view of a memory or event where I was also present, it would be a lot harder to leave yourself outside the poem. I really enjoyed doing this assignment over all. I felt like it answered a lot of the questions we have been thinking about all semester as we read professional poets work. For me, it gave me a little more insight on how Cathy Park Hong could create a voice and character so unique and different from her own, yet also so convincing. It also reminded me of the poem about the girl from the spelling bee, that was actually written by a man. I think it shows that it is an important part of being a poet, to be able to remove yourself from your work a little bit. I guess in a way it prevents you from limiting yourself to only what you know, you just have to learn how to feel what other people experience in their lives and translate it into poetry. I think this goes along with the depersonalization that we were debating in class last week, with the Stein and Eliot essays. I think that after everything we covered this year, that is one of the most interesting questions we have discussed.
work shop on assignment #9
I really enjoyed workshopping the first four assignment #9 on Tuesday. It was very interesting to see the characters that people chose to write about and how they shared that characters point of view and feelings through their poem. I was surprised how many people took stories that they had heard recently and decided to write a poem in which an individual from that story was the narrator. I found this assignment to be my favorite assignment thus far because it was refreshing to write from the point of view of someone completely different from yourself. It was fun to add details from their life and write about their characteristics that were very different from anything that I would write about when writing a poem from my point of view. It was challenging however to provide information in the poem that would provide insight into the thoughts and attitudes of the narrator. Creating a tone in a poem when writing from the point of view of a character that is very different from your self was somewhat difficult and at times left me wondering if what I was writing was believable. I am excited to workshop the assignment #9s from the other members of my workshop group.
Assignment # 10
It's sad to think that this will be the last assignment we have to write. I have to say, overall I really enjoyed writing and becoming a better writer at poetry. I gradually changed my poems throughout the semester and I tried many different techniques.
When I was writing my last assignment I did something very different. I left the rhyme scheme behind and tried to apply "the candy" somewhere else. If you have read my poem or will be reading it, I don't know if the candy is that obvious to the reader. Most of the childhood memories that I incorporate in the poem are the candy. However, they are my memories and I don't know if that "candy" factor is obvious to the reader. So, now I am telling you that the laughs, the screams, the parties, and the fights are "the candy" in my poem.
When I started to write this piece I also approached it on a serious level, and tried to incorporate the special relationship my cousin and I share. All the ups and down I have been through with her it was hard not to look back at the childish moments we shared and not laugh. But, now I am not sure if it is as funny to the reader as it is to me; this conflict I am facing make me wonder, is my poem serious, funny, or both?
Basically, what I have to do is have you guys read my poem, then report back to me in our whole class work shop.
Hope ya like it!!!
When I was writing my last assignment I did something very different. I left the rhyme scheme behind and tried to apply "the candy" somewhere else. If you have read my poem or will be reading it, I don't know if the candy is that obvious to the reader. Most of the childhood memories that I incorporate in the poem are the candy. However, they are my memories and I don't know if that "candy" factor is obvious to the reader. So, now I am telling you that the laughs, the screams, the parties, and the fights are "the candy" in my poem.
When I started to write this piece I also approached it on a serious level, and tried to incorporate the special relationship my cousin and I share. All the ups and down I have been through with her it was hard not to look back at the childish moments we shared and not laugh. But, now I am not sure if it is as funny to the reader as it is to me; this conflict I am facing make me wonder, is my poem serious, funny, or both?
Basically, what I have to do is have you guys read my poem, then report back to me in our whole class work shop.
Hope ya like it!!!
Friday, April 10, 2009
De-personalization
I have to say, after reading Eliot's essay and discussing the nature of "good art" in class yesterday, I feel as though I've gained a much broader and fruitful understanding of historical artistic transitions. Originally, even after methods last year, I encountered much difficulty in mentally organizing all the different literary theories in circulation during the first decades of the 20th century. Now though, after reading Eliot's piece, I can see how pertinent the question of who is the author and what is his/her role with respect to their work. The idea that, as an author, one ought to put themselves through a process of depersonalization in approaching their piece is quite shocking to me. That isn't to say I disagree with it though, considering I can definitely see how artistic progress and depersonalization are relatable and interdependent. However, considering I am more focused (literarily) on Romantic literature as well as the Victorian era, it was a bit hard to swallow Eliot and Stein's perspectives on it. Regardless, it has been a greatly educational week for me with regard to these theories.
I must admit that I do miss workshopping and reading my classmates' work!
Bye!
I must admit that I do miss workshopping and reading my classmates' work!
Bye!
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Gertrude Stein Debate!!!
Hey ya’ll. I’m a little ahead for a blog for next week, but I just wanted to share some of my thoughts about the Gertrude Stein reading we did this week and discussed in class today. Firstly, I would like to say that I think it’s great that the reading started such a heated discussion in our class. There have been a few things that we have discussed that have kind of gotten people ‘fired up’ and I think it’s fun to hear both sides of the story! Next, I would like to say that I agree that Stein's "What are Masterpieces and Why Are There So Few Of Them?" is a bit confusing and frustrating to read. I found that hearing the passages read out loud definitely helped me to understand what she was getting at. However, she is still somewhat hard to comprehend because the concept she is trying to explain is very difficult. The section where she argues that “Identity is recognition, you know who you are because you and others remember anything about yourself but essentially you are not that when you are doing anything” got me thinking. After this statement, Stein then goes on to comment about the little dog and how “the little dog knowing that you are you and your recognizing that he knows, that is what destroys creation.” I felt like this statement was complicated by the fact that we identify certain works as masterpieces. So by identifying and recognizing them as masterpieces, we essentially destroy the concept of a masterpiece (for, as she says earlier, “it is impossible to talk about masterpieces and what they are because talking essentially has nothing to do with creation,” which seems to imply that a masterpiece has to do with creation and therefore if creation is destroyed, so would the masterpiece.)
As I am writing this, I am beginning to realize why Stein may have written her piece the way she did. That last sentence there sounded like Stein… it dragged on a bit. All the ideas are connected and difficult to comprehend so when you have a thought about them you have to just kind of let it out. (Try thinking about one small section of the piece and maybe you will find the same thing!) We might be a little more understanding of Stein and less critical of her style (although I still think her piece is difficult to read) after thinking about what she is trying to communicate a bit more.
Anyway, I am interested to hear what everyone else has to say! I don’t know if I really understand what she is saying, but I thought that what I did figure out after re-reading this part of the piece was interesting (although, I admit, I may still be confused… she’s hard to understand!). Maybe some of the rest of you will have some thoughts too....
Have a great weekend everyone!!
As I am writing this, I am beginning to realize why Stein may have written her piece the way she did. That last sentence there sounded like Stein… it dragged on a bit. All the ideas are connected and difficult to comprehend so when you have a thought about them you have to just kind of let it out. (Try thinking about one small section of the piece and maybe you will find the same thing!) We might be a little more understanding of Stein and less critical of her style (although I still think her piece is difficult to read) after thinking about what she is trying to communicate a bit more.
Anyway, I am interested to hear what everyone else has to say! I don’t know if I really understand what she is saying, but I thought that what I did figure out after re-reading this part of the piece was interesting (although, I admit, I may still be confused… she’s hard to understand!). Maybe some of the rest of you will have some thoughts too....
Have a great weekend everyone!!
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Yesterday's Class
I really liked class yesterday as we had a very interesting and in depth discussion about today’s readings. I liked Emily Dickinson’s poem “348 (505)” the most of all of our readings yesterday. I really liked how Dickinson delivered her message. She was saying that she would prefer to be the audience of art, so she is able to take in and enjoy the piece, rather than creating it. This is particularly interesting to be because Dickinson is a poet herself, so she is one of the people making the art. It presents an interesting oxymoron considering she is creating art by writing the poem where she is delivering the message that she likes seeing the art, not making it. What does this mean? What point is she trying to make with this oxymoron?
Blog for this Week
I just got done reading the article and poem we had to read for today. I must say that the What makes a master piece article was pretty confusing. I am looking forward for a more clear explanation of it in class. What I got from the master piece article is that we do not know what makes up a master piece but we know pretty much just about everything that does not make a master piece. Yet some of these elements that do not make a master piece can be in a master piece. I found it hard to understand the concept of not having a beginning and an ending since you have to have both of those things in order to have something. Unless of course, someone is talking about the universe which in a way is a master piece that has no ending and we know of no beginning. I did really enjoy the Ars Poetica by Archibald MacLEISH. I found it really cool how the author describes what a poem should be but does so in a way that is very unfamiliar to me. I really enjoy the descriptions he uses such as a poem should be wordless as the flight of birds. To me I feel like atleast hear he is saying that a poem in theory needs to be wordless to be weightless to take on flight like birds, which is beautiful. The ending of this particular poem is one that I really enjoy because as I read it is basically saying that a poem should not say but do things. Which I find to be a pretty powerful ending for this particular poem.
Poetry Readings
Last Thursday there was Poetry for Peace celebrating Pablo Neruda. I had only gone to one Poetry for Peace reading before, but that was three years ago freshman year, and I don’t remember much of it. Though I liked it, the session wasn’t what I was expecting. I don’t know how poetry readings usually work, but I was expecting it to be much more informal and more powerful. There were a handful of professors, twice as many students, and a few guest speakers brought in from other schools (granted, they came from Canton or Potsdam, but still). There were refreshments like at the writer series events, and we were even recorded (which was a little nerve-racking). The guest speakers talked about the poet and various aspects of his life, what they liked about the poem they were reading, etc. All of the speakers were interesting to listen to, but the whole event felt more like a lecture than the poetry jam I had envisioned. There were probably six or seven students present and almost all of us read. I chose to read Neruda’s “Puedo escribir los versos mas tristes esta noche” first in Spanish, then in English. I didn’t really give a prelude as to why I chose this poem and why I love it so much (I don’t know if I mentioned before that the whole event was nearly 2 hours long—again, not what I was expecting) because I wanted to keep my reading short and sweet. Also, I don’t know if the location is a fixed one or if for each Poetry for Peace session there’s a different venue, but I think it would be a better idea to hold it in the Winston room. It’s a more open and welcoming environment; people can come and go as they please and those who are just passing through can stop and listen for a minute or too should they want.
I also went to the Swan Day performance the week before, and I have to say after the Poetry for Peace session, Swan Day was more what I was expecting out of a poetry jam. The students of a gender studies class put on the event, and there was a lot of original poetry performed through different expressions. Poetry was recited in the middle of a dance, poetry was acted out through skits, and it was also just read but there was so much emotion in the reader’s voice that you were moved. I guess that’s why I liked the Swan Day performance better and would call it more of a poetry session than Poetry for Peace, because the poetry there was expressed in so many different ways and it had much more intensity and passion than the Poetry for Peace readings. Then again maybe it’s unfair for me to say that, maybe it’s different when the poem you’re reading is your own work of art and you know just how you want it to be expressed… Either way, I definitely recommend going to Poetry for Peace because even though it’s long and it wasn’t what I had envisioned, I still got to listen to some great poetry. Oh, and those who aren’t seniors should definitely go to next year’s Swan Day Performance!
I also went to the Swan Day performance the week before, and I have to say after the Poetry for Peace session, Swan Day was more what I was expecting out of a poetry jam. The students of a gender studies class put on the event, and there was a lot of original poetry performed through different expressions. Poetry was recited in the middle of a dance, poetry was acted out through skits, and it was also just read but there was so much emotion in the reader’s voice that you were moved. I guess that’s why I liked the Swan Day performance better and would call it more of a poetry session than Poetry for Peace, because the poetry there was expressed in so many different ways and it had much more intensity and passion than the Poetry for Peace readings. Then again maybe it’s unfair for me to say that, maybe it’s different when the poem you’re reading is your own work of art and you know just how you want it to be expressed… Either way, I definitely recommend going to Poetry for Peace because even though it’s long and it wasn’t what I had envisioned, I still got to listen to some great poetry. Oh, and those who aren’t seniors should definitely go to next year’s Swan Day Performance!
ars poetica
It has been interesting to read all of the different ars poeticas for this week. I found T.S Elliot's to be a little obnoxious. I felt like he raised a lot of good points, but they seemed a little obscured by his pompous tone. However, I thought the part where he said "Some one said: 'The dead writers are remote from us because we know so much more than they did.' Precisely, and they are that which we know." was really powerful. It made me think of earlier in the semester when Professor Hummer said that we would not only write poetry, but also read it to develop a conversation with the world of poetry. I think that is exactly what Elliot was trying to convey. Whether a new poet is developing a technique because he disliked the tradition of poets that came before him, or if he is attempting to take a technique that they employed successfully and make it new, every new author is defined by their link with the old. I think this is a really cool idea, to think that every new poem that is written is in someway impacted by every other poem that has ever been written. It is an interesting idea of connectivity, where the authors that influence me as a poet, were influenced by other authors themselves and so on. So the poetry that we write today, designed to be fresh and innovative, is actually the product of generations of reactions and ideas of the poetry created before us. I like the idea that poetry that we may never have read, and poets we may never have known existed, indirectly shape the work we do today.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Ars Poetica
In no other field of visual or written art can you create a "how-to" or a "how-it-should-be" piece without it being boring. Essays telling the reader how things should be written come off as plain and unexciting, and are often aggressive and commanding over the reader. And though I've never seen one, I can only imagine a painting that is suppose to show people how to paint would either be extremely primary or would not even be able to get across the idea to the viewer. However, when it comes to poetry, "Ars Poetica" are able to represent a perfect example to the reader without compromising its style or substance. I'm interested to see how different author's styles affect the idea of ars poetica poems, and am interested to see which style communicates its message the best.
While it wasn't quite a poem, I think our reading for last class, T.S. Eliot's "Tradition and the Individual Talent," points out some valuable pieces of information when it comes to writing poems. The biggest point that I took out of the reading was something that I believe a lot of poets strive for, but only ends up hurting their work - the poet trying to impress their own feelings on the reader, rather than trying to have the reader create the emotion themselves. This is a key aspect in my mind, and definitely something to keep handy when writing my next poem.
While it wasn't quite a poem, I think our reading for last class, T.S. Eliot's "Tradition and the Individual Talent," points out some valuable pieces of information when it comes to writing poems. The biggest point that I took out of the reading was something that I believe a lot of poets strive for, but only ends up hurting their work - the poet trying to impress their own feelings on the reader, rather than trying to have the reader create the emotion themselves. This is a key aspect in my mind, and definitely something to keep handy when writing my next poem.
Romantic vs. Modernists vs. Chelsea
I keep questioning, “What is art? What is poetry? And how did this poem make it into the Norton?” I enjoyed Elliot, Dickinson and Stein’s work for this week because of this particular matter. These poems/papers really answer some questions that I have been asking throughout this course. This week was productive in answering my questions in a few ways and stirring up further thoughts.
Elliot mentioned that good poetry is not about yourself and your emotions but outside of the author. Dickinson did very well in creating a character outside of herself in “348”. Elliot also mentioned good poetry evoked feelings without actually saying those feelings. These were constructive criticisms and very helpful, although hard, for me to work on to become a better poet. I can deal with trying to be outside of myself as a poet and I will work on this new type of creativity and astounding poetic ability that Dickinson portrays. I can agree with Elliot and Dickinson in their works to encourage others to use less experiences and impressions in straight forward manner, but, Stein just didn’t tickle my fancy. I completely disagreed with her! She went way beyond the ideas of Elliot and Dickinson to take away other aspects that I believe are necessary to being human no less a poet. I actually wrote a poem to her and about her “Masterpiece” paper. I was very upset and thought that her “calling out” of masterpieces was not right. I still wonder who is to judge a masterpiece. I remember in high school learning that all poetry; all art is “good” art to the viewer. I learned from Stein that good poetry and especially masterpieces have to no identity, no necessity, no familiarity, no memory, and no human nature. Good poetry is about the human mind. This is how I received Stein’s work and I was/am furious. I could be interpreting art way differently but I believe that there are “good”/successful works out there that encapsulate identity, time, familiarity, necessity, memory and human nature. I suppose we could get in to a psychology battle and argue whether we use human nature or human mind. I would like to say we are human and our nature is outward in everyway. One cannot shut out memory, identity, and human nature to write a poem. This is impossible. She is saying masterpieces are few because they must involved or not involve these things. I cannot wait for my poem to be workshopped, the one where I write a letter to Ms. Stein. I will not be in class on Thursday, but hopefully if I interpreted this article in a wrong way, someone please let me know so I can change my poem and letter to Gertrude.
Elliot mentioned that good poetry is not about yourself and your emotions but outside of the author. Dickinson did very well in creating a character outside of herself in “348”. Elliot also mentioned good poetry evoked feelings without actually saying those feelings. These were constructive criticisms and very helpful, although hard, for me to work on to become a better poet. I can deal with trying to be outside of myself as a poet and I will work on this new type of creativity and astounding poetic ability that Dickinson portrays. I can agree with Elliot and Dickinson in their works to encourage others to use less experiences and impressions in straight forward manner, but, Stein just didn’t tickle my fancy. I completely disagreed with her! She went way beyond the ideas of Elliot and Dickinson to take away other aspects that I believe are necessary to being human no less a poet. I actually wrote a poem to her and about her “Masterpiece” paper. I was very upset and thought that her “calling out” of masterpieces was not right. I still wonder who is to judge a masterpiece. I remember in high school learning that all poetry; all art is “good” art to the viewer. I learned from Stein that good poetry and especially masterpieces have to no identity, no necessity, no familiarity, no memory, and no human nature. Good poetry is about the human mind. This is how I received Stein’s work and I was/am furious. I could be interpreting art way differently but I believe that there are “good”/successful works out there that encapsulate identity, time, familiarity, necessity, memory and human nature. I suppose we could get in to a psychology battle and argue whether we use human nature or human mind. I would like to say we are human and our nature is outward in everyway. One cannot shut out memory, identity, and human nature to write a poem. This is impossible. She is saying masterpieces are few because they must involved or not involve these things. I cannot wait for my poem to be workshopped, the one where I write a letter to Ms. Stein. I will not be in class on Thursday, but hopefully if I interpreted this article in a wrong way, someone please let me know so I can change my poem and letter to Gertrude.
Monday, April 6, 2009
can someone tell me if this is a sonnet?
I wanted to attempt a sonnet, just to say I did it. It was too poor to submit for an assignemnt, but can someone tell me I did it? or not. I just counted 10 claps for each line. Is that wrong? I didn't count any stressed or unstressed. Can it still work that way, I think it was easier. You can stress anywhere you want! As long as there are 10 claps, right? Or am I so wrong. I'm sonnet dumb!
Brown Hown
I’m writing a poem for my dear dog.
It’s no Shakespeare I’m only a novice.
I apologize if this is a fog.
My dog has passed and him I dearly miss.
He was my best friend this is very true.
We would run together on our dirt road.
He did come to campus and visit SLU.
Chasing squirrels was a funny of his modes.
Is it silly that my dog made me chuckle?
He knew me better than any one else.
When I would cry my tears he would snuggle.
I love him and I remember his smell.
You can all me crazy and call me wild.
s’ No other dog can make me smile.
Brown Hown
I’m writing a poem for my dear dog.
It’s no Shakespeare I’m only a novice.
I apologize if this is a fog.
My dog has passed and him I dearly miss.
He was my best friend this is very true.
We would run together on our dirt road.
He did come to campus and visit SLU.
Chasing squirrels was a funny of his modes.
Is it silly that my dog made me chuckle?
He knew me better than any one else.
When I would cry my tears he would snuggle.
I love him and I remember his smell.
You can all me crazy and call me wild.
s’ No other dog can make me smile.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Assignment 8: Review of a Literary Journal
The magazine that I chose for this assignment was, Potpourri Magazine Poems & Short Stories, 1995-2003, edited by Polly Swafford. It was published in 2004 by Griffon House Publications which is based out of Wilmington, Delaware. In this book there are poems and short stories of various authors. The book itself once past the cover is in just plain black and white. The cover of this is not very interesting either, it is just a plain siler color with an orange backround with the title and authors on the cover. It appears to be a very cheap book and is fairly small, with a purpose of "promoting the arts". The books intention is to promote greater awareness of the diversity of cultures and peoples in the world. The writings, in order to get into this book had to promote, in a positive way, some aspect of our multicultural heritage. I feel that this magazine did a good job at accomplishing its mission. I feel that this magazine really does show the cultural differences that we do have in our world. Such as one poem talks about a native american going off and riding his harley, and deing like a brave, and another poem titled "Los Meninos", which means men of honor, talks about people in a soup kitchen pretending the food is something else and in the winter time they "dance and prance around the fire just to keep warm". For an even further example for how well this book was able to show this cultural differences was shown in a poem titled, "The Ancestors" which is about the culture and people living in the western hemishpere at a time before colombus even came over the seas. The poems and short stories in this magazine are all about different things relating to certain cultures from all around the world. So all in all, what these poems have in common is a theme. What I found particularly interesting was the way the authors were able to describe a piece of culture in many different styles and ways. Aside from the poems another fun and interesting thing I found in this book was in the very back in a section called Authors' Bios. What was interesting about this was to see where these authors came from and what particular backround they cam from and how this influenced the poem that they decided to write. Personally I find it interesting in itself to see where these authors have come from. One of them is from India, Angelee Deodhar, and then the majority of the authors published in this magazine are from the states, with a few of them who have traveled and/or studied abroad. This I found was pretty cool because it allowed me , the reader, coming from the united states, to see how other people from our country view and interpret other cultures. My favorite poem in this book is actually the first on. This is the one that I described earlier about the harley. I just absolutley love the last stanza in this poem which ended up making it my favorite poem in this book. I would have to say that I probably would pick up another issue of this journal, however I was reading about this book on wikipedia and found out that they discontinued this series in 2003 so therefore i would not be able to pick up any new material. I would like to put my poetry in this journal. I really think that one of the messages that this journal is actually saying is that we are all different but we can still understand one another and eventually this understanding will lead to peace. I have already writen a few poems about peace or touching apon it, along with writing a poem that would actually fit into this book. The poem that I wrote was called The Difference. So therefore since I have an interest in these issues it would be pretty cool to be publsihed in a magazine similar to this one.
International Poetry Review
The "International Poetry Review" is a collection of poems from writers around the world including Russia, Poland, Brazil, Austrailian, South American, and English poems. The end of the review gives information about each poet published in the journal. While their cultural differences can be seen from their backgrounds given, many similarities and differences about cultures around the world can be seen through their writings.
The structure of this book is composed of the poem in the writer's native language with a translation on the next page. The first thing that stood out to me when reading this journal is the beauty of what a poem looks like in a completly different form of language and writing. While the structure looks the same the characters of the words look abnormal but when translated each poem still works in our language. This to me points out the importance of the meaning of the poem. We all know that words can be "Lost in Translation" but the underlying stories, meanings, and the tone of the authors voice can still be understood and the reader still gets to read a master piece. The translations of the poems are a way for us to communicate with someone we could normally not understand. They allow you to feel how the poet felt, and read their opinions when normally you wouldn't be exposed to this because of a language barrier.
Of the many poets from around the world published in this journal the majority of poems seemed to be about love. The first two poets I read although from different countries, one Slovak and one Polish both wrote about love with analogies of nature. They both used very descriptive langauge seen through the Slovak writer Radovan Brenkus in his poem "Words on the Mend" he says "cracked bark. We don't know how the resin sweated out by the crack turns to honey in a woman's womb" and by the Russian writer Vadim Andreyev and his line " two ruts of a country road. Two inseperable sisters." They both use great metaphors and analogies to the central theme of their poem.
One of my favorite poems in the journal was a poem translated from spanish called "Someone."
Since Spanish is a language that I have studied it was the first poem I attempted to read outloud in the native language. After reading it in English first to make it easier to understand the flow of words I realized that this poem seemed more dramatic in its own langauge. It made me think about how this journal is limited in a few ways. Poems that rhyme in the native language can not be translated that way. Also words translated have different amounts of syllabyles, lengths, beats and structure that can not be perfectly translated. With that said I feel that hearing the poet read their work out loud before the translation would really benefit the reader. The poem "Someone" even when translated is still very deep. It talks about lonliness and reaches out to everyone in the world with lines such as " Someone/perhaps like you or me/ will get out of bed/ possibly thinking/ that nothing/ nothing that happens elsewhere/ is more important/ than his small/ and miserable world." This to me shows that poetry is a language with in its self. It is a tool used by the writer to express the feelings they have. Despite the differences in structure that might be heard when this poem is read in Spanish or English I believe the reader in both cases can feel the authors pain.
In conclusion the "International Poetry Review" teaches us alot about what poetry means to people around the world. It was interesting to see how two people on opposite sides of the World both can write about love and portray the meaning in such a similar way. It also shows the talent of writers everywhere and gives everyone a chance to read the poetry of people around the world. Some of the best work is written in other languages and this journal exposes us to that.
The structure of this book is composed of the poem in the writer's native language with a translation on the next page. The first thing that stood out to me when reading this journal is the beauty of what a poem looks like in a completly different form of language and writing. While the structure looks the same the characters of the words look abnormal but when translated each poem still works in our language. This to me points out the importance of the meaning of the poem. We all know that words can be "Lost in Translation" but the underlying stories, meanings, and the tone of the authors voice can still be understood and the reader still gets to read a master piece. The translations of the poems are a way for us to communicate with someone we could normally not understand. They allow you to feel how the poet felt, and read their opinions when normally you wouldn't be exposed to this because of a language barrier.
Of the many poets from around the world published in this journal the majority of poems seemed to be about love. The first two poets I read although from different countries, one Slovak and one Polish both wrote about love with analogies of nature. They both used very descriptive langauge seen through the Slovak writer Radovan Brenkus in his poem "Words on the Mend" he says "cracked bark. We don't know how the resin sweated out by the crack turns to honey in a woman's womb" and by the Russian writer Vadim Andreyev and his line " two ruts of a country road. Two inseperable sisters." They both use great metaphors and analogies to the central theme of their poem.
One of my favorite poems in the journal was a poem translated from spanish called "Someone."
Since Spanish is a language that I have studied it was the first poem I attempted to read outloud in the native language. After reading it in English first to make it easier to understand the flow of words I realized that this poem seemed more dramatic in its own langauge. It made me think about how this journal is limited in a few ways. Poems that rhyme in the native language can not be translated that way. Also words translated have different amounts of syllabyles, lengths, beats and structure that can not be perfectly translated. With that said I feel that hearing the poet read their work out loud before the translation would really benefit the reader. The poem "Someone" even when translated is still very deep. It talks about lonliness and reaches out to everyone in the world with lines such as " Someone/perhaps like you or me/ will get out of bed/ possibly thinking/ that nothing/ nothing that happens elsewhere/ is more important/ than his small/ and miserable world." This to me shows that poetry is a language with in its self. It is a tool used by the writer to express the feelings they have. Despite the differences in structure that might be heard when this poem is read in Spanish or English I believe the reader in both cases can feel the authors pain.
In conclusion the "International Poetry Review" teaches us alot about what poetry means to people around the world. It was interesting to see how two people on opposite sides of the World both can write about love and portray the meaning in such a similar way. It also shows the talent of writers everywhere and gives everyone a chance to read the poetry of people around the world. Some of the best work is written in other languages and this journal exposes us to that.
Friday, April 3, 2009
Emily Dickinson...you ROCK!
I am slightly embarrassed for saying that I love Emily Dickinson's poetry. I feel you are probably saying, "You didn't know her poetry before?" No, I didn't. This class offered me a chance to see just who I like and who I do not.
I just read 348 by Emily Dickinson. It was required for next class, but I found myself continuing to turn the pages to find more of her work. It’s great. She has an imagination that creates so many pictures for the reader. Who would thing to say, “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain,” from 340 or 202 is a little humorous:
“Faith is a fine invention
For Gentlemen who see!
But Microscopes are prudent
In an Emergency!
I am interested in her. Why the numbers for titles? Why the capital letters in some random words throughout her poems? I assume these are not random choices. She is a unique poet and I like that.
I just read 348 by Emily Dickinson. It was required for next class, but I found myself continuing to turn the pages to find more of her work. It’s great. She has an imagination that creates so many pictures for the reader. Who would thing to say, “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain,” from 340 or 202 is a little humorous:
“Faith is a fine invention
For Gentlemen who see!
But Microscopes are prudent
In an Emergency!
I am interested in her. Why the numbers for titles? Why the capital letters in some random words throughout her poems? I assume these are not random choices. She is a unique poet and I like that.
Poetry for Peace: Pablo Neruda
The first thing I think of when I hear the name Pablo Neruda is French fries. He is a Chilean poet who writes a variety of types of poetry, including an impressive collection of Odes to simple things, like French fries and broken objects. The first Neruda poem I was ever introduced to was his poem “Oda a las papas fritas” (“Ode to French Fries”) during my high school Spanish class. The poem, though simple, was fun and lighthearted and it stuck in my mind. Neruda, however, is much more than just a writer of simple and comical odes; he has written powerful poetry as a social activist, as well as created over 100 moving love sonnets. I was looking forward to the reading to be exposed to some more of Neruda’s poetry!
I really enjoyed the reading! It was kind of nice to be in an intimate setting, and I thought it was great that many of the people attending the reading actually got up and read a poem, myself included. I wasn’t expecting to, however Marina Llorente, the organizer of the Poetry for Peace series, is also one of my Spanish professors and when I walked into the room she saw me and persuaded me to read. I didn’t really want to at first, but I am glad I did it. I read the English translation of Neruda’s Love Sonnet 76. It was fun to participate!
Some great poems were shared. The reading opened with “I’m Going to Explain a Few Things,” a poem about the Spanish Civil War, followed by “You Come Flying,” a tribute to Neruda’s friend who passed away. I read "I Do Not Love You Except Because I Love You," a love sonnet, next with a girl from my Spanish class. Following our reading was “Oda a Valparaiso,” a great poem with awesome images and a fun personification of a city. I really enjoyed this poem, the vibrant descriptions and language used to describe the city was wonderful, both in Spanish and in English. Next, Candice did an awesome job reading another of Neruda’s love poems. This was probably my favorite poem of the reading. It’s entitled “Puedo escribir los versos mas tristes esta noche” (“I Can Write The Saddest Lines Tonight”) and was about losing a lover to someone else. There was amazing imagery, incredibly sad lines, the tone was a mix of sadness, desperation, regret and bitterness and the English translation was just as beautiful as the original Spanish poem. Probably one of the most moving readings came next with the poem “Oda a las cosas rotas” (“An Ode to Broken Things”). This reader (I feel really bad, but I am not sure of her name) was incredibly passionate. She also read one of her own poems also, about an ongoing war in her native city, which was great! Hearing someone read their own poetry is a moving experience because it allows those listening to see the importance of the poem to the writer, and see a more personal side of the poem. The reading wrapped up with “Oda al libro” (“Ode to a Book”) and finally, another of Neruda’s love sonnets.
Overall, the poetry reading was a great experience. Because I speak and understand Spanish, I feel that I got more out of the reading. I could connect with the poems both in Spanish and in English, as well as appreciate the language and the variations between the two versions of each poem. Attending the reading was a great way to be introduced to more of Neruda’s poetry—I found that I really like his poems, both the comical and the more somber. I think he is a great poet and I hope to read (and listen to) more of his poetry in the future!
p.s. Here's the poem I read! Chelsea put one up on the blog, so I thought I would too. Enjoy!
I Do Not Love You Except Because I Love You
Pablo Neruda
I do not love you except because I love you;
I go from loving to not loving you,
From waiting to not waiting for you
My heart moves from cold to fire.
I love you only because it's you the one I love;
I hate you deeply, and hating you
Bend to you, and the measure of my changing love for you
Is that I do not see you but love you blindly.
Maybe January light will consume
My heart with its cruel
Ray, stealing my key to true calm.
In this part of the story I am the one who
Dies, the only one, and I will die of love because I love you,
Because I love you, Love, in fire and blood.
I really enjoyed the reading! It was kind of nice to be in an intimate setting, and I thought it was great that many of the people attending the reading actually got up and read a poem, myself included. I wasn’t expecting to, however Marina Llorente, the organizer of the Poetry for Peace series, is also one of my Spanish professors and when I walked into the room she saw me and persuaded me to read. I didn’t really want to at first, but I am glad I did it. I read the English translation of Neruda’s Love Sonnet 76. It was fun to participate!
Some great poems were shared. The reading opened with “I’m Going to Explain a Few Things,” a poem about the Spanish Civil War, followed by “You Come Flying,” a tribute to Neruda’s friend who passed away. I read "I Do Not Love You Except Because I Love You," a love sonnet, next with a girl from my Spanish class. Following our reading was “Oda a Valparaiso,” a great poem with awesome images and a fun personification of a city. I really enjoyed this poem, the vibrant descriptions and language used to describe the city was wonderful, both in Spanish and in English. Next, Candice did an awesome job reading another of Neruda’s love poems. This was probably my favorite poem of the reading. It’s entitled “Puedo escribir los versos mas tristes esta noche” (“I Can Write The Saddest Lines Tonight”) and was about losing a lover to someone else. There was amazing imagery, incredibly sad lines, the tone was a mix of sadness, desperation, regret and bitterness and the English translation was just as beautiful as the original Spanish poem. Probably one of the most moving readings came next with the poem “Oda a las cosas rotas” (“An Ode to Broken Things”). This reader (I feel really bad, but I am not sure of her name) was incredibly passionate. She also read one of her own poems also, about an ongoing war in her native city, which was great! Hearing someone read their own poetry is a moving experience because it allows those listening to see the importance of the poem to the writer, and see a more personal side of the poem. The reading wrapped up with “Oda al libro” (“Ode to a Book”) and finally, another of Neruda’s love sonnets.
Overall, the poetry reading was a great experience. Because I speak and understand Spanish, I feel that I got more out of the reading. I could connect with the poems both in Spanish and in English, as well as appreciate the language and the variations between the two versions of each poem. Attending the reading was a great way to be introduced to more of Neruda’s poetry—I found that I really like his poems, both the comical and the more somber. I think he is a great poet and I hope to read (and listen to) more of his poetry in the future!
p.s. Here's the poem I read! Chelsea put one up on the blog, so I thought I would too. Enjoy!
I Do Not Love You Except Because I Love You
Pablo Neruda
I do not love you except because I love you;
I go from loving to not loving you,
From waiting to not waiting for you
My heart moves from cold to fire.
I love you only because it's you the one I love;
I hate you deeply, and hating you
Bend to you, and the measure of my changing love for you
Is that I do not see you but love you blindly.
Maybe January light will consume
My heart with its cruel
Ray, stealing my key to true calm.
In this part of the story I am the one who
Dies, the only one, and I will die of love because I love you,
Because I love you, Love, in fire and blood.
Lit Review
The Southern Review is literary magazine published quarterly at Louisiana State University. I am assuming, given that it is published at LSU, the magazine must be based at least somewhere near, if not directly in, the university. The review’s website is: http://www.lsu.edu/tsr/. As I mentioned previously, the magazine is published quarterly with each issue marking one of the four seasons. Though I am unaware what exactly the contents of the other three seasons are, my copy of the autumn 2008 issue is composed primarily of poetry, with a large sampling of fiction, two essays, two literature reviews, and some visual art. As far as the printed material goes, the magazine is primarily a standard black and white on a nice, cream colored stock paper. The few photographs by Frank Relle, however, come in full color and on glossy photo paper. The book itself seems a standard size, if not just a bit smaller than the average sheet of paper. The cover is a photograph of a ramshackle wooden house set in an eerie, dirty light. I would have to say it was the unusual dynamics of the cover that drew me to this magazine. Amongst the other, more plain reviews lined side by side on the shelves of the library, this one seemed to carry with it a very creepy, yet strangely alluring vibe. As far as I can tell, there is no mission statement or manifesto set into the publication to guide the reader. The poetry in the magazine is generally of a mixed variety. There is no definite through-line connecting all of the poems, and they are scattered in the volume amidst the other works of fiction and critical essays. Most of the poems, however, do seem to gravitate towards the “down beat” mode, with some of the most striking poems blending a stinging vein of black comedy with observations on death and loss. Looking over the list of contributors, I must say that at least the majority of these writers seem to be old hands at publishing. Many have not only written books, but multiple ones, and each of these writers has already had their work, whether poetry or not, featured in other magazines. My favorite poem is actually the first one in the issue, Approaching Thunder by Amaud Jamaul Johnson. I am a sucker for storm metaphors and I found this poets use of the storm mixed with the silence of awkward, forced lovemaking to be particularly jarring. If I am to be completely honest, I don’t know if I can find a least favorite. There were a few I didn’t have particularly strong feelings for, but each is interesting and well thought out. I don’t feel it’s appropriate for me to lower them in your estimation without substantial loathing on my part.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Poetry For Peace
I walked in and saw the refreshments staring. ..
Back at me.
Hot apple cider, cold apple cider, molasses cookies, and my favorite…
Banana bread.
The gallery was so clean and crisp. ..
As always.
I saw the chairs, the microphone, and people filtering in. I saw Jess and Candice. …
Phew, Relieved.
Comfort in knowing…
Someone.
Else.
I saw a leader, a director, oh a professor. of what? It didn’t take me long to realize, a professor of language.
Dfhsdufgois mksdfjoseitr ,jsdkfis mskldfjsodf jslkdfulosrf
“No,” I said.
Sdlkfjsd sdfuj iu9itp jsdfki xljs
“No.”
sdlkfusd ksdfksjd sdfjusdf
Finally,
“I have no idea what you are saying.”
She assumed I was one of her, SPANISH students.
“No, I will not be reading in a language I do not know. I am just here to listen and enjoy.”
The Poetry for Peace tonight, was readings of Chile poet, Pablo Neruda. I could have listened for hours even though I had no idea what they were saying. Good thing there was a second reading in English. The poetry in either language was beautiful. Neruda spoke of nature, and had imagery that captivated your senses. BUT, His poems were not meant to be romantic, although they flowed so gracefully off the lips of the speakers to my ears. Pablo Neruda wrote political and social poems. He was an activist. He did not hide. He used art as a form of resistance. He spoke for social justice. He spoke as a character. A professor from SUNY Potsdam, also a poet, and from Chile, read one of the first poems of the night. He said, “The romantic view is that poetry creates a character. Neruda defends those who have no voice.” He becomes the character. He was just a regular guy. He said,
“Come see the blood in the streets.
Come see the blood in the streets.
COME SEE THE BLOOD IN THE STREETS.”
How beautiful is that to you?
I find beauty in the reality. Knowing the context makes it that much more powerful. He was just a regular guy, trying to make good.
I'm Explaining a Few Things
You are going to ask: and where are the lilacs?
and the poppy-petalled metaphysics?
and the rain repeatedly spattering
its words and drilling them full
of apertures and birds?
I'll tell you all the news.
I lived in a suburb,
a suburb of Madrid, with bells,
and clocks, and trees.
From there you could look out
over Castille's dry face:
a leather ocean.
My house was called
the house of flowers, because in every cranny
geraniums burst: it was
a good-looking house
with its dogs and children.
Remember, Raul?
Eh, Rafel? Federico, do you remember
from under the ground
my balconies on which
the light of June drowned flowers in your mouth?
Brother, my brother!
Everything
loud with big voices, the salt of merchandises,
pile-ups of palpitating bread,
the stalls of my suburb of Arguelles with its statue
like a drained inkwell in a swirl of hake:
oil flowed into spoons,
a deep baying
of feet and hands swelled in the streets,
metres, litres, the sharp
measure of life,
stacked-up fish,
the texture of roofs with a cold sun in which
the weather vane falters,
the fine, frenzied ivory of potatoes,
wave on wave of tomatoes rolling down the sea.
And one morning all that was burning,
one morning the bonfires
leapt out of the earth
devouring human beings --
and from then on fire,
gunpowder from then on,
and from then on blood.
Bandits with planes and Moors,
bandits with finger-rings and duchesses,
bandits with black friars spattering blessings
came through the sky to kill children
and the blood of children ran through the streets
without fuss, like children's blood.
Jackals that the jackals would despise,
stones that the dry thistle would bite on and spit out,
vipers that the vipers would abominate!
Face to face with you I have seen the blood
of Spain tower like a tide
to drown you in one wave
of pride and knives!
Treacherous
generals:
see my dead house,
look at broken Spain :
from every house burning metal flows
instead of flowers,
from every socket of Spain
Spain emerges
and from every dead child a rifle with eyes,
and from every crime bullets are born
which will one day find
the bull's eye of your hearts.
And you'll ask: why doesn't his poetry
speak of dreams and leaves
and the great volcanoes of his native land?
Come and see the blood in the streets.
Come and see
The blood in the streets.
Come and see the blood
In the streets!
Pablo Neruda
Back at me.
Hot apple cider, cold apple cider, molasses cookies, and my favorite…
Banana bread.
The gallery was so clean and crisp. ..
As always.
I saw the chairs, the microphone, and people filtering in. I saw Jess and Candice. …
Phew, Relieved.
Comfort in knowing…
Someone.
Else.
I saw a leader, a director, oh a professor. of what? It didn’t take me long to realize, a professor of language.
Dfhsdufgois mksdfjoseitr ,jsdkfis mskldfjsodf jslkdfulosrf
“No,” I said.
Sdlkfjsd sdfuj iu9itp jsdfki xljs
“No.”
sdlkfusd ksdfksjd sdfjusdf
Finally,
“I have no idea what you are saying.”
She assumed I was one of her, SPANISH students.
“No, I will not be reading in a language I do not know. I am just here to listen and enjoy.”
The Poetry for Peace tonight, was readings of Chile poet, Pablo Neruda. I could have listened for hours even though I had no idea what they were saying. Good thing there was a second reading in English. The poetry in either language was beautiful. Neruda spoke of nature, and had imagery that captivated your senses. BUT, His poems were not meant to be romantic, although they flowed so gracefully off the lips of the speakers to my ears. Pablo Neruda wrote political and social poems. He was an activist. He did not hide. He used art as a form of resistance. He spoke for social justice. He spoke as a character. A professor from SUNY Potsdam, also a poet, and from Chile, read one of the first poems of the night. He said, “The romantic view is that poetry creates a character. Neruda defends those who have no voice.” He becomes the character. He was just a regular guy. He said,
“Come see the blood in the streets.
Come see the blood in the streets.
COME SEE THE BLOOD IN THE STREETS.”
How beautiful is that to you?
I find beauty in the reality. Knowing the context makes it that much more powerful. He was just a regular guy, trying to make good.
I'm Explaining a Few Things
You are going to ask: and where are the lilacs?
and the poppy-petalled metaphysics?
and the rain repeatedly spattering
its words and drilling them full
of apertures and birds?
I'll tell you all the news.
I lived in a suburb,
a suburb of Madrid, with bells,
and clocks, and trees.
From there you could look out
over Castille's dry face:
a leather ocean.
My house was called
the house of flowers, because in every cranny
geraniums burst: it was
a good-looking house
with its dogs and children.
Remember, Raul?
Eh, Rafel? Federico, do you remember
from under the ground
my balconies on which
the light of June drowned flowers in your mouth?
Brother, my brother!
Everything
loud with big voices, the salt of merchandises,
pile-ups of palpitating bread,
the stalls of my suburb of Arguelles with its statue
like a drained inkwell in a swirl of hake:
oil flowed into spoons,
a deep baying
of feet and hands swelled in the streets,
metres, litres, the sharp
measure of life,
stacked-up fish,
the texture of roofs with a cold sun in which
the weather vane falters,
the fine, frenzied ivory of potatoes,
wave on wave of tomatoes rolling down the sea.
And one morning all that was burning,
one morning the bonfires
leapt out of the earth
devouring human beings --
and from then on fire,
gunpowder from then on,
and from then on blood.
Bandits with planes and Moors,
bandits with finger-rings and duchesses,
bandits with black friars spattering blessings
came through the sky to kill children
and the blood of children ran through the streets
without fuss, like children's blood.
Jackals that the jackals would despise,
stones that the dry thistle would bite on and spit out,
vipers that the vipers would abominate!
Face to face with you I have seen the blood
of Spain tower like a tide
to drown you in one wave
of pride and knives!
Treacherous
generals:
see my dead house,
look at broken Spain :
from every house burning metal flows
instead of flowers,
from every socket of Spain
Spain emerges
and from every dead child a rifle with eyes,
and from every crime bullets are born
which will one day find
the bull's eye of your hearts.
And you'll ask: why doesn't his poetry
speak of dreams and leaves
and the great volcanoes of his native land?
Come and see the blood in the streets.
Come and see
The blood in the streets.
Come and see the blood
In the streets!
Pablo Neruda
Literary Magazine Review
The literary magazine which I chose to review for this assignment is "Tar River Poetry". To offer some factual information about it, this particular edition was Volume 48, Number 1, Fall 2008, 30th Anniversary Issue (yeah I know, it winded me too). There is only one editor for the magazine and his name is Peter Makuck (there is a wonderful little FAQ with Peter at this edition's end, and it's worth checking out!). The magazine's publisher is East Carolina University, which is located in Greenville, NC. Each year there are two publications of "Tar River Poetry" and the costs are $12/yr and $20/2yr.
That being said, the journal is comprised solely of poems, the aforementioned FAQ, and a "contributors" section. Each of the numerous poems included somehow relate to rustic, simplistic living. Each author, in my opinion, does well to capture the essence of such lifestyles, and offers a realistic, non-exaggerated view of what it is to live in the tedious elements of the boonies (as I personally can vouche for). That being said, I ought to mention my favorite poem in the magazine. It is called "Making Fields" and was written by AR Ammons. While I can't say I'm too aquainted with his writing, the name is annoyingly familiar. Anyhow, the poem is about, well, making fields. The piece is in freeverse and contains no particular meter or form. Each line and each stanza is of different lengths. Thematically, the poem concentrates on the difficulty and familial pride that comes from being a farmer's grandson and son. As Ammons remarks "My father said the meat came off the insides of his father's hands" (5). This gorey yet honest line is perfect for opening the poem and paints a strong picture of the challenges faced by the narrator's family while living in a rural setting. In all, I highly recommend it.
In terms of the journal's aesthetics, there really aren't any. Like the common theme of rurality, the journal appears simple and quite to the point. Colorwise it is completely off-white with a bit of manila speckled here or there. The cover is quasi-cool with a picture of a road sign surrounded by trees. The picture looks, quite frankly, as though it was taken in Canton. Each poem is printed with simple black ink and without complementary illustrations. If you are a person of frills and aesthetic thrills, don't botherrrrr (joking, of course).
Lastly I would like to mention that there is a very nice contributors section at the end of the magazine. It lists all the authors and gives a sneak peek at their biographical info. For example, it mentions that AR Ammons grew up on a tobacco farm in North Carolina. We can, then, see why he might write a poem called "Making Fields". Honestly, most of the biographies indicate some sort of rural living on the part of the author, meaning these people probably know what they're writing about. Furthermore, most of the contributors have lengthy publication records and/or have degrees in English and/or teach at universities. In all, I highly recommend this to anyone who really wants to taste a bit of rustic life in poetry. I truly enjoyed it.
That being said, the journal is comprised solely of poems, the aforementioned FAQ, and a "contributors" section. Each of the numerous poems included somehow relate to rustic, simplistic living. Each author, in my opinion, does well to capture the essence of such lifestyles, and offers a realistic, non-exaggerated view of what it is to live in the tedious elements of the boonies (as I personally can vouche for). That being said, I ought to mention my favorite poem in the magazine. It is called "Making Fields" and was written by AR Ammons. While I can't say I'm too aquainted with his writing, the name is annoyingly familiar. Anyhow, the poem is about, well, making fields. The piece is in freeverse and contains no particular meter or form. Each line and each stanza is of different lengths. Thematically, the poem concentrates on the difficulty and familial pride that comes from being a farmer's grandson and son. As Ammons remarks "My father said the meat came off the insides of his father's hands" (5). This gorey yet honest line is perfect for opening the poem and paints a strong picture of the challenges faced by the narrator's family while living in a rural setting. In all, I highly recommend it.
In terms of the journal's aesthetics, there really aren't any. Like the common theme of rurality, the journal appears simple and quite to the point. Colorwise it is completely off-white with a bit of manila speckled here or there. The cover is quasi-cool with a picture of a road sign surrounded by trees. The picture looks, quite frankly, as though it was taken in Canton. Each poem is printed with simple black ink and without complementary illustrations. If you are a person of frills and aesthetic thrills, don't botherrrrr (joking, of course).
Lastly I would like to mention that there is a very nice contributors section at the end of the magazine. It lists all the authors and gives a sneak peek at their biographical info. For example, it mentions that AR Ammons grew up on a tobacco farm in North Carolina. We can, then, see why he might write a poem called "Making Fields". Honestly, most of the biographies indicate some sort of rural living on the part of the author, meaning these people probably know what they're writing about. Furthermore, most of the contributors have lengthy publication records and/or have degrees in English and/or teach at universities. In all, I highly recommend this to anyone who really wants to taste a bit of rustic life in poetry. I truly enjoyed it.
Literary Magazine Review
For this assignment I went to the library and read a journal of translated poems published by the Poetry Foundation. The one I read was their April 2009 translation issue, which included poems by twenty-four poets of different backgrounds. This literary magazine attracted me first because of the bright abstract picture on the cover, but then fully got my attention when I saw that it was a work of translated poetry.
Last semester I took a Spanish class called Literary Translations, and discussed translation theories and what it means to be faithful to a text. We also tried our hand at translating songs, short stories and poetry from Spanish into English, and it proved to be very very challenging! Thinking of all the work and frustration from last semester’s class, I decided to do my report on this translation issue to see the work of other translators. I wasn’t familiar with any of the poets nor their work, so honestly I wouldn’t have known one way or another just how faithful the translated poem was to the original text, but I did admire the poems (or rather the translation if only because I know how hard it is to do). Each translator wrote a page length note to accompany the poem. I found these to be sometimes more interesting than the actual poem. The translator would provide a biography of the original poet saying where he or she was from, what time period their from, their influences, their other works, and so on. The translator would also include an analysis of the poem, and that definitely helped me to understand some of the poems in which otherwise I would not have understood. Again, it reminded me of my translation class because when we translated poems we spent weeks and weeks picking them apart. One thing I learned in that class was that you can’t be a good translator if you don’t understand what it is you’re translating. I can only imagine how long it must have taken the translators in this magazine to fully grasp the poem they translated, to do the actual translation, tweak it, and then be satisfied with it.
The poems themselves were a little weird and dark for my taste. Some were about death, some just had really sad, melancholic tones. The ones that I enjoyed the most had lots of nature imagery, were more romantic and had different forms. Two poems that I really enjoyed in particular were “Love-Kiss XLI: The Mutability of Human Affairs” translated from German by Russian poet Quirinus Kuhlmann, and “Matinadologoi” translated from Greek contemporary folk poetry of Crete. Kuhlmann’s poem is a weird kind of sonnet with a form of ABCA, ABCA, ADDA, EE, and every other word is separated with a slash. The page folds out, like a poster tucked in a magazine and at the bottom of the page he writes in all caps, then on the back of the page in real small font the he gives this poetic explanation of what he was trying to do with his poem. It caught my eye because the form was different from anything that I’ve seen before, and I liked the theme of love, life and nature (which the translator explains were themes taken from the book Song of Songs in the Bible). What I liked the most about “Matinadologoi” again were the themes about nature, life and creation, as well as the form. The selection is more like a collection of phrases—there are about two lines of poetry and then a series of astrics separating that line from the one that follows and has a different thought. It was very interesting and enjoyable to read, and had I not picked up this literary magazine I probably never would have come across folk poetry from Crete!
I really recommend this magazine, especially if you have a love and appreciation of languages and translations!
Last semester I took a Spanish class called Literary Translations, and discussed translation theories and what it means to be faithful to a text. We also tried our hand at translating songs, short stories and poetry from Spanish into English, and it proved to be very very challenging! Thinking of all the work and frustration from last semester’s class, I decided to do my report on this translation issue to see the work of other translators. I wasn’t familiar with any of the poets nor their work, so honestly I wouldn’t have known one way or another just how faithful the translated poem was to the original text, but I did admire the poems (or rather the translation if only because I know how hard it is to do). Each translator wrote a page length note to accompany the poem. I found these to be sometimes more interesting than the actual poem. The translator would provide a biography of the original poet saying where he or she was from, what time period their from, their influences, their other works, and so on. The translator would also include an analysis of the poem, and that definitely helped me to understand some of the poems in which otherwise I would not have understood. Again, it reminded me of my translation class because when we translated poems we spent weeks and weeks picking them apart. One thing I learned in that class was that you can’t be a good translator if you don’t understand what it is you’re translating. I can only imagine how long it must have taken the translators in this magazine to fully grasp the poem they translated, to do the actual translation, tweak it, and then be satisfied with it.
The poems themselves were a little weird and dark for my taste. Some were about death, some just had really sad, melancholic tones. The ones that I enjoyed the most had lots of nature imagery, were more romantic and had different forms. Two poems that I really enjoyed in particular were “Love-Kiss XLI: The Mutability of Human Affairs” translated from German by Russian poet Quirinus Kuhlmann, and “Matinadologoi” translated from Greek contemporary folk poetry of Crete. Kuhlmann’s poem is a weird kind of sonnet with a form of ABCA, ABCA, ADDA, EE, and every other word is separated with a slash. The page folds out, like a poster tucked in a magazine and at the bottom of the page he writes in all caps, then on the back of the page in real small font the he gives this poetic explanation of what he was trying to do with his poem. It caught my eye because the form was different from anything that I’ve seen before, and I liked the theme of love, life and nature (which the translator explains were themes taken from the book Song of Songs in the Bible). What I liked the most about “Matinadologoi” again were the themes about nature, life and creation, as well as the form. The selection is more like a collection of phrases—there are about two lines of poetry and then a series of astrics separating that line from the one that follows and has a different thought. It was very interesting and enjoyable to read, and had I not picked up this literary magazine I probably never would have come across folk poetry from Crete!
I really recommend this magazine, especially if you have a love and appreciation of languages and translations!
Literary Journal Review
The literary journal that I chose to review was the International Poetry Review for Spring 2008. This edition was the Hispanic/Latino issue. It is published in the spring and fall of every year. It was founded in 1975 by Evalyn Pierpoint Gill and is dedicated to her idea that "the world will be a better place as we cross language barriers to hear the voice of the poet in in different countries". International Poetry Review is a complilation of poems from contemporary writers in all different languages. Each international poem is provided with a translation on the opposite page. There is also a section in each issue that is dedicated to work written originally in English. It is published by The University of North Carolina, Department of Romance Languages. It also contains a web based edition at http://www.uncg.edu/rom/IPR/IPR.htm. However, it is also located in ODY library here at St. Lawrence and can be found in the American Humanities Index on EBSCO.
International Poetry review contains almost strictly poems, although there is a book review in the back of every edition. For the Hispanic/Latino edition the book reviewed was Selected Poems of Luis de Gongora: A Bilingual Edition by John Dent-Young. It was reviewed by Paul Carranza from The University of North Carolina. The poems however, are not limited strictly to poets affiliated with The University of North Carolina, in fact The International Poetry Review encourages a diverse group of poets. The idea behind the journal is to introduce English speaking poets to the diversity and beauty of international poems, by providing both the original and an english translation. As an international writer or a poet of another language, publishing in this literary journal would expand your audience, to allow your readers not to be confined to only those who speak your language. As a reader of this literary journal, you are expanding your conception of technique and style to other countries and languages. It would help to push your limits and introduce you to the new and unexpected.
For this specific issue, a collection of hispanic/latino poets were featured. The editor, a latino poet himself, provided an introduction to this issue describing the difference between latino and hispanic poets and what it meant to be a latino poet. The chief attributes of latino poets are that they include sociopolitical concerns in their work, demonstrate an wareness of others and difference, allude to the influence of the great tradityions of Spanish poets and poetry, and most importantly contain at least an occassional overflow of Spanish vocabulary and phrases into their predominantly English texts.
My favorite poem, was actually a poem from the foreword, and though it was orignally written in English and did not need a translation it still nexemplifies many of the traditional qualities of Latino poetry. The poem is pretty long, so i won't include it all, but here is an excerpt of it:
What I Mean
"So many words when what I mean is only
that I have forgotten the ancient places in my soul.
Will they know me, these places when i return?
Will they receive the child climbing broken walls
into the garden? A strange boy, something
of the Jew, the Lithuanian, the Spanish, something
of the Indian eyes that saw the Irazu volcano
burst alive, and the river Maranon
mix the violent cocktail of different bloods."
I loved this poem because I felt it was perfect for the introduction. It features the idea of being tied to a language. The author is limited in his emotions because he himself, is lost in translation. The english langauge isn't adequate to adress his latino heritage, an idea many of the poets in this issue adressed.
International Poetry review contains almost strictly poems, although there is a book review in the back of every edition. For the Hispanic/Latino edition the book reviewed was Selected Poems of Luis de Gongora: A Bilingual Edition by John Dent-Young. It was reviewed by Paul Carranza from The University of North Carolina. The poems however, are not limited strictly to poets affiliated with The University of North Carolina, in fact The International Poetry Review encourages a diverse group of poets. The idea behind the journal is to introduce English speaking poets to the diversity and beauty of international poems, by providing both the original and an english translation. As an international writer or a poet of another language, publishing in this literary journal would expand your audience, to allow your readers not to be confined to only those who speak your language. As a reader of this literary journal, you are expanding your conception of technique and style to other countries and languages. It would help to push your limits and introduce you to the new and unexpected.
For this specific issue, a collection of hispanic/latino poets were featured. The editor, a latino poet himself, provided an introduction to this issue describing the difference between latino and hispanic poets and what it meant to be a latino poet. The chief attributes of latino poets are that they include sociopolitical concerns in their work, demonstrate an wareness of others and difference, allude to the influence of the great tradityions of Spanish poets and poetry, and most importantly contain at least an occassional overflow of Spanish vocabulary and phrases into their predominantly English texts.
My favorite poem, was actually a poem from the foreword, and though it was orignally written in English and did not need a translation it still nexemplifies many of the traditional qualities of Latino poetry. The poem is pretty long, so i won't include it all, but here is an excerpt of it:
What I Mean
"So many words when what I mean is only
that I have forgotten the ancient places in my soul.
Will they know me, these places when i return?
Will they receive the child climbing broken walls
into the garden? A strange boy, something
of the Jew, the Lithuanian, the Spanish, something
of the Indian eyes that saw the Irazu volcano
burst alive, and the river Maranon
mix the violent cocktail of different bloods."
I loved this poem because I felt it was perfect for the introduction. It features the idea of being tied to a language. The author is limited in his emotions because he himself, is lost in translation. The english langauge isn't adequate to adress his latino heritage, an idea many of the poets in this issue adressed.
Literary Journal Review
The literary journal I choose to review was the January 2009 edition of Poetry. This journal is published by Poetry Foundation which appears to be located in Chicago, Illinois and uses the website that is designated for the Poetry Foundation which is www.poetryfoundation.org. This journal appears to be a very official and selective journal featuring well known poets and releasing a new edition every month of the year. I have never analyzed a literary journal before this but if I were to make an assessment on this journal by its presentation I would guess that this was one of the foremost journals for poetry in the United States.
When beginning reading this edition of this journal there are thirty five pages of straight poetry, laid out poem after poem usually featuring one to three poems by each of the included authors. All of the poems are presented very clearly and appear as if they are taken directly from a book of poems by one author and placed into the journal. When looking at this collection of poems printed on high quality paper and wrapped within the glossy cover and binding of the journal the reader gets the feeling that they are reading some of the most highly sought after poems currently being written. The cover of the journal is itself very simple providing the month and year of the publication as well as the name of the Journal. Beyond that the cover featured a midsized cartoon image of a gorilla attacking a young boy which is encapsulated in a circle and located directly under the name Poetry. Although this cartoon seems silly the cover still gives off a remarkably professional feel leading the reader to assume without necessarily taking the time to analyze the cartoon that it must be very witty and pertinent to some theme or make some allusion which is relevant to the genre of poetry today. Beneath the cartoon the names of three poets are provided as their works are featured in this issue; the names given are Langston Hughes, Clive James, and Michael Hoffman.
When reading the poems included by these authors and a handful of others the feeling that this is a very notable publication still remains as the poems to me, were with a few exceptions, very engaging and enjoyable to read. Beyond just poems there were also four essays included in the journal and all of these were provided reviews/ analysis / critiques of a specific poem or of a book of poems by one poet. These reviews were very in depth and very well written. They showed that the writers had put an incredible amount of thought into the poems that they were to analysis and had also studied the biography of the poets who wrote them. I especially enjoyed reading the review of Valzhyna Mort’s book Factory of Tears. Reading the review of this book and selected samples made me really want to check out this entire collection.
Following the reviews there was a small section of letters to the editor. All of the letters featured in this section, although I did not know the poems and essays they were commenting on, were well thought out and well written showing that the readers of this journal have expansive knowledge of poetry and are very well read and likely well educated. It is this combined with the impressive credentials of the contributing poets listed in the back of the book that have again led me to believe that this is a very revered and prestigious publication in the field of poetry.
I found this journal very pleasurable to read and would look into other issues of this. Although the poetry seems more traditional than the poetry we sometimes look at in class the majority of the poems featured, I thought were very good and some were even inspiring to read. The poem I enjoyed most in this journal was titled Change by Wendy Videlock it was short, simple, and powerful.
When beginning reading this edition of this journal there are thirty five pages of straight poetry, laid out poem after poem usually featuring one to three poems by each of the included authors. All of the poems are presented very clearly and appear as if they are taken directly from a book of poems by one author and placed into the journal. When looking at this collection of poems printed on high quality paper and wrapped within the glossy cover and binding of the journal the reader gets the feeling that they are reading some of the most highly sought after poems currently being written. The cover of the journal is itself very simple providing the month and year of the publication as well as the name of the Journal. Beyond that the cover featured a midsized cartoon image of a gorilla attacking a young boy which is encapsulated in a circle and located directly under the name Poetry. Although this cartoon seems silly the cover still gives off a remarkably professional feel leading the reader to assume without necessarily taking the time to analyze the cartoon that it must be very witty and pertinent to some theme or make some allusion which is relevant to the genre of poetry today. Beneath the cartoon the names of three poets are provided as their works are featured in this issue; the names given are Langston Hughes, Clive James, and Michael Hoffman.
When reading the poems included by these authors and a handful of others the feeling that this is a very notable publication still remains as the poems to me, were with a few exceptions, very engaging and enjoyable to read. Beyond just poems there were also four essays included in the journal and all of these were provided reviews/ analysis / critiques of a specific poem or of a book of poems by one poet. These reviews were very in depth and very well written. They showed that the writers had put an incredible amount of thought into the poems that they were to analysis and had also studied the biography of the poets who wrote them. I especially enjoyed reading the review of Valzhyna Mort’s book Factory of Tears. Reading the review of this book and selected samples made me really want to check out this entire collection.
Following the reviews there was a small section of letters to the editor. All of the letters featured in this section, although I did not know the poems and essays they were commenting on, were well thought out and well written showing that the readers of this journal have expansive knowledge of poetry and are very well read and likely well educated. It is this combined with the impressive credentials of the contributing poets listed in the back of the book that have again led me to believe that this is a very revered and prestigious publication in the field of poetry.
I found this journal very pleasurable to read and would look into other issues of this. Although the poetry seems more traditional than the poetry we sometimes look at in class the majority of the poems featured, I thought were very good and some were even inspiring to read. The poem I enjoyed most in this journal was titled Change by Wendy Videlock it was short, simple, and powerful.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Literary Magazine
The name of the literary magazine I read is called, "Poets and Writers." It is published by Poets and Writers Inc, a nonprofit, tax exempt corporation organized for literary and educational purposed and is supported publicly by the New York State Council of the Arts, the National Endowments for the Arts, and many more. It is based out of New York City. The website of this literary magazine can be found at www.pw.org. This magazine is published bimonthly, and I read the March/April 2009 edition, which also happens to be the Volume 37 second issue.
In every issue one can find short stories, poems, and advertisements for retreats and groups for the type of people this magazine attracts. In addition, each issue has a theme. For example, the next issue will be based on literary life abroad and will have a collection of stories by four people and challenges they face all over the world when it comes to trying to publish their work. There are articles comparing different types of writing in this issue. For example, there is a story of creative nonfiction vs. journalism. People can publish advertisements in this magazine, but unlike other magazines that have a wide range of information in them, this certain magazine only focuses on writing. So there is an advertisement for the Pushcart Prize, which is a book that is made of stories, poems, essays and memoirs selected from hundreds of small presses. It is apparently quite an honor to appear in this book.
This magazine is very neatly presented, in color glossy paper and is bound tightly, presenting an appealing look. The information is new and up to date, and the front of it looks like a normal magazine found at grocery stores etc, so it looked like it would be easy to navigate through and that there would be a few different types of stories/poems/etc. in it. I spent a long time looking and although I found a certain charm in the old tattered literary magazines that many people obviously enjoy, I wanted to find a more current issue.
This magazine seems to give a voice to writers in this world who may face challenges when it comes to writing. The next issue will be all about people facing challenges in the publishing world! However, just because these writers are somewhat undiscovered or not as well known, at least to me, I was intrigued by their writing and totally sucked in by their stories.
There is no real common theme tying every story together, but there were a few in this issue of writers sharing their views on what is truly important to them in life. A story that stood out to me was by Nina Shengold who writes about Mary Gaitskill's stories about what it means to be alive. Another story, by Kevin Nance is about a Cuban American novelist and her journey back to her homeland, a place that she has not visited in a while, but is still very important to her and she realizes this on her journey back. There are quite a few stories that writers wrote about other people.
I really enjoyed the story called, "The Voyage Many Returns." It is about a six year old girl, Achy who escaped Cuba at the young age of six and traveled to America in a wooden boat with her family and forty four other people in a violent storm. Her last memories of Cuba were not pleasant ones, but as she grew older and became a writer she felt the need to get in touch with her roots and so she did so. This long story is about how she came to return to Cuba, her feelings before and after and during the journey, and her life in America. It was inspiring and even made me tearful as I related to not being in touch with my own heritage as I wish I was!
I think I would like to publish my work in a journal like this if I ever became comfortable enough to publish my work because something that Kathy Park Hong and Theo said in class once was that publishing is extremely hard, and this magazine even spoke to the challenges some writers face when it comes to publishing. Since this magazine recognizes this and is a nonprofit organization, I feel like it gives voice to the people that are not well known and I feel like I might have a chance if I tried sending a piece to this magazine!
In every issue one can find short stories, poems, and advertisements for retreats and groups for the type of people this magazine attracts. In addition, each issue has a theme. For example, the next issue will be based on literary life abroad and will have a collection of stories by four people and challenges they face all over the world when it comes to trying to publish their work. There are articles comparing different types of writing in this issue. For example, there is a story of creative nonfiction vs. journalism. People can publish advertisements in this magazine, but unlike other magazines that have a wide range of information in them, this certain magazine only focuses on writing. So there is an advertisement for the Pushcart Prize, which is a book that is made of stories, poems, essays and memoirs selected from hundreds of small presses. It is apparently quite an honor to appear in this book.
This magazine is very neatly presented, in color glossy paper and is bound tightly, presenting an appealing look. The information is new and up to date, and the front of it looks like a normal magazine found at grocery stores etc, so it looked like it would be easy to navigate through and that there would be a few different types of stories/poems/etc. in it. I spent a long time looking and although I found a certain charm in the old tattered literary magazines that many people obviously enjoy, I wanted to find a more current issue.
This magazine seems to give a voice to writers in this world who may face challenges when it comes to writing. The next issue will be all about people facing challenges in the publishing world! However, just because these writers are somewhat undiscovered or not as well known, at least to me, I was intrigued by their writing and totally sucked in by their stories.
There is no real common theme tying every story together, but there were a few in this issue of writers sharing their views on what is truly important to them in life. A story that stood out to me was by Nina Shengold who writes about Mary Gaitskill's stories about what it means to be alive. Another story, by Kevin Nance is about a Cuban American novelist and her journey back to her homeland, a place that she has not visited in a while, but is still very important to her and she realizes this on her journey back. There are quite a few stories that writers wrote about other people.
I really enjoyed the story called, "The Voyage Many Returns." It is about a six year old girl, Achy who escaped Cuba at the young age of six and traveled to America in a wooden boat with her family and forty four other people in a violent storm. Her last memories of Cuba were not pleasant ones, but as she grew older and became a writer she felt the need to get in touch with her roots and so she did so. This long story is about how she came to return to Cuba, her feelings before and after and during the journey, and her life in America. It was inspiring and even made me tearful as I related to not being in touch with my own heritage as I wish I was!
I think I would like to publish my work in a journal like this if I ever became comfortable enough to publish my work because something that Kathy Park Hong and Theo said in class once was that publishing is extremely hard, and this magazine even spoke to the challenges some writers face when it comes to publishing. Since this magazine recognizes this and is a nonprofit organization, I feel like it gives voice to the people that are not well known and I feel like I might have a chance if I tried sending a piece to this magazine!
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