When I realized I’d have to read modern poetry for this
class, I had no idea where to begin. To me, the genre consists of bewildered,
existentialist writings with odd punctuation and pretentious phrases. Granted,
I haven’t read much poetry but my sympathies lie more with the narratives of
the Illiad or Inferno, or the dazzling wit of G.K. Chesterton, with statements
such as “For the front of the cover shows somebody shot/And the back of the
cover will tell you the plot.” Few modern poets attempt either category.
One poet I have read and enjoyed for this class is Elizabeth
Bishop. Her poem “One Art” struck me as straightforward yet challenging,
beginning with the opening line, The art
of losing isn't hard to master. She
presents a thought about everyday life in such a way as to make readers consider
the implications. What does it mean to lose things? Is it painful because we aren't used to it, or because it happens too often? Besides the nature of losing things, the poem
also made me think about the purpose of poetry.
In oral cultures, poetry was a way to tell a story. But as
writing became more common, poetry gained new applications—to present a
situation, to explore feelings, to play with words. Today, poetry seems to focus primarily on the
second of those three uses. Maybe that’s one reason I have no taste for it. The
poetry I like to read presents images, whether caricatures or detailed
portraits, stripped of superfluous details.
While they may take unusual angles, they still attempt to present a
discernible reality.
I have noticed this intention in my own writing as well. In
my poem for Advanced Writer’s Workshop, I tried to show brief portraits of
individuals in a famished city. My
previous poem for this class took a more impressionistic approach, trying to
get inside the mind of a grieving man. My next poem, however, seems determined
to plunge into existentialism. Maybe it’s the opening line—“Tonight I am
homesick, but not for home,”—or just the tendency of poetry to flounder towards
abstract, but I think I’ll see where it goes.
Do any of you have certain aspects or styles you don’t like
to read, but seem to creep into your writing anyway? What do you do when that
happens?
It's funny that you're drawn to older and not modern poetry - I think I'm the opposite. :) I totally see where you're coming from, though. It's really difficult to immerse yourself in a genre or style that you're not comfortable with. I think you've found a good compromise in Elizabeth Bishop - I remember reading her for McCann's Contemporary Poetry class, and while she might technically be contemporary, her stuff is more old-fashioned - kind of like your style seems to be (in a good way, of course!). To answer your question, I'm sure that happens to me, but I think it's so subconscious that I don't really realize it's happening. For instance, sometimes I'm surprised to read how lyrical my writing is, when I don't seem to read a ton of lyrical poetry or prose.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate hearing your thoughts on this, Julie. I resonated with a lot of what you said here, though it shows up in my life in different ways. I think I especially experienced the inner resistance to contemporary poetry that you're expressing when I first started here at Northwestern College. I loved form poems, loved rhymes, loved the more elevated language. I think, for me, it hasn't as much been the existentialism/ambiguity of modern poetry but just how realistic it seems to me, compared to what I gravitate towards. Personally, I really enjoy and had always pictured myself writing more lyrical, "landscape of the mind" poetry, but I've mostly ended up writing poetry that centers around one, specific scene. As far as what to do when that happens, I think I try to capture some of the abstract ideas into the scene-focused poetry, tried to merge the two. So, maybe see if there are ways that you can blend your poetry values with those of contemporary poetry? To sort of "meet in the middle"? I don't think you should ever give up your more narrative style of poetry--I've so enjoyed reading it! Just look for ways to fit it into the contemporary poetry genre.
ReplyDeleteI think I'm in the middle! I'm not entirely sure whether I like modern or older poetry. I think I tend to go the neither route and stick to lyrical prose or essays, since I always have a hard time understanding poetry. And it's funny, because when I DO try to write poetry, it's hard to understand and not anything like what I would want it to be. Thus, I try to stay away from it when I can. And that's when I get surprised - when it shows up in my rambling writings anyways.
ReplyDeleteGoing off your last point, Sarah, I sometimes wonder if we tend to unconsciously imitate what we read, even if that's not necessarily the way we would normally write or "our own ideas." Is this necessarily a bad thing? Is that even possible to see in our writing or do we just morph different styles into our own?