In class we've now moved on to a study of spoken word poetry. Specifically last week we learned about Poetry Slams and I was introduced to this whole other subculture of poetic artists who, in my opinion, have revived poetry's original purpose and pleasure in the oral tradition.
When we think of great poetry of ancient times - the Odyssey, the Illiad, Beowulf, the Psalms, Culwyth and Olwen - little do we often realize that these poems were spoken for hundreds of years before they were ever written down. Before writing existed, people were speaking poetry. These keepers of history and legend were revered and rewarded for their great memory and delivery, and above all else for their stories.
Sunday, February 22, 2004
Sunday, February 15, 2004
In class this week we talked more about digital poetics and the influence of form on poetry. I feel like I’ve sort of made my case on digital poetics already, so I thought I’d do a little critique/commentary on a particular e-poem. It can be found at www.poemsthatgo.com. It is called “The Last Day of Betty Nkomo,” by Young-Hae Chang. Go watch it and then come back and read what I have to say.
*****
Okay. If you’ve just watched/experienced/whatever-ed this poem/art/slideshow, then you are probably wondering how exactly this fits into your definition of poetry. For me, this is closer to poetry than other instances of digital poetics I’ve seen.
There is a linear quality to the poem. There are no aspects of computer interaction, nor are there images or video to accompany the poem. If you were quick enough, you could write down the words in the order they are presented and the poem could exist pretty closely to the way it does online. Though the music and speed control reading to a large extent, the poem could be written on the page and the speed of the reader controlled by spacing, something like this:
Today it’s cool in the shade.
My cheek is cool against the dirt.
Yes it is!
I will lift my head up today, then see if I can sit up.
I will lift my head today.
I will stretch my arm from the shade and set a hand in the sun.
I will look up and out the doorway now at someone passing
Will he come?
And if that someone is my son, I will smile.
I will lift my cheek from the dirt and set my hand in the sun.
I will lift my head today, or maybe tomorrow.
Don’t believe it! Ha! Ha! Ha!
The rats go in, the rats go out.
The sun goes up, the sun goes down.
The world goes ‘round, the
Of course it’s not exactly the same, but then that’s why digital poems aren’t exactly poems…
I also think this “poem” succeeds because the simplicity keeps the words in focus, and any multimedia elements that exist are very carefully added to bring more of a context to the poem. It’s almost like learning about the poet or what the poet intended when reading a poem in print. If it’s a decent poem, it’s probably not necessary to know those things, but it always makes it interesting to find it out. That’s sort of how I feel about a digital poem like this one. The music, the author’s name, the minimalist aspects of the presentation, all suggest a particular cultural setting. One can imagine a Korean village; a woman broken by age and poverty, lying in her dirt-floored home, gazing out the window into the hot sun, hoping that today will be the day her son returns. Perhaps he is at war, perhaps he is at work, perhaps he is dead. It is a powerful poem, I think, and a powerful presentation at that. I really enjoyed this “digital poetics.”
*****
Okay. If you’ve just watched/experienced/whatever-ed this poem/art/slideshow, then you are probably wondering how exactly this fits into your definition of poetry. For me, this is closer to poetry than other instances of digital poetics I’ve seen.
There is a linear quality to the poem. There are no aspects of computer interaction, nor are there images or video to accompany the poem. If you were quick enough, you could write down the words in the order they are presented and the poem could exist pretty closely to the way it does online. Though the music and speed control reading to a large extent, the poem could be written on the page and the speed of the reader controlled by spacing, something like this:
Today it’s cool in the shade.
My cheek is cool against the dirt.
Yes it is!
I will lift my head up today, then see if I can sit up.
I will lift my head today.
I will stretch my arm from the shade and set a hand in the sun.
I will look up and out the doorway now at someone passing
Will he come?
And if that someone is my son, I will smile.
I will lift my cheek from the dirt and set my hand in the sun.
I will lift my head today, or maybe tomorrow.
Don’t believe it! Ha! Ha! Ha!
The rats go in, the rats go out.
The sun goes up, the sun goes down.
The world goes ‘round, the
Of course it’s not exactly the same, but then that’s why digital poems aren’t exactly poems…
I also think this “poem” succeeds because the simplicity keeps the words in focus, and any multimedia elements that exist are very carefully added to bring more of a context to the poem. It’s almost like learning about the poet or what the poet intended when reading a poem in print. If it’s a decent poem, it’s probably not necessary to know those things, but it always makes it interesting to find it out. That’s sort of how I feel about a digital poem like this one. The music, the author’s name, the minimalist aspects of the presentation, all suggest a particular cultural setting. One can imagine a Korean village; a woman broken by age and poverty, lying in her dirt-floored home, gazing out the window into the hot sun, hoping that today will be the day her son returns. Perhaps he is at war, perhaps he is at work, perhaps he is dead. It is a powerful poem, I think, and a powerful presentation at that. I really enjoyed this “digital poetics.”
Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! I hope everyone had a wonderful day, and realizes that Valentine's Day can be about any kind of love: romantic, family, friendship, or just plain human. To celebrate the day, some friends and I went and did some volunteering at a refugee resettlement program. We get love, so we give love.
Moooving on to the realm of poetry...
For our class, students get in groups for "poetry outreach programs." This basically means organizing an event that brings poetry outside of the english department and into "the world.” Last week the first group in our class had their event, a love poetry reading in honor of the upcoming Valentine’s Day. I went to be supportive (and to get some much needed personal-growth convocation credit), and strangely enough I was really spurned to think about poetry and how the average person perceives it.
The event was held in a little restaurant at our school, so people came and went, or overheard the poetry (and the less-than-subtle announcements of convo credit) and came to check it out. I think that the way the information was presented was perfect – people could pick a poem to read out of a little book the group had compiled. Interspersed within the readings were very brief biographies of some of the poets. The audience and participants were learning about poetry in a completely non-threatening manner. The compilation of poems included everything from Elizabeth Barrett Browning to the lyrics of 80’s love ballads, and I think this helped people reevaluate their definitions or assumptions about what constitutes “poetry.” As they got up to jokingly dedicate a poem to their friends, the participants were learning that poetry doesn’t have to be scary. It doesn’t have to be overanalyzed and academic – it can be fun. While I doubt anyone left with a conscious new appreciation for poetry, I’m certain that most left with one of the most positive and least threatening poetry experiences of their lives.
Moooving on to the realm of poetry...
For our class, students get in groups for "poetry outreach programs." This basically means organizing an event that brings poetry outside of the english department and into "the world.” Last week the first group in our class had their event, a love poetry reading in honor of the upcoming Valentine’s Day. I went to be supportive (and to get some much needed personal-growth convocation credit), and strangely enough I was really spurned to think about poetry and how the average person perceives it.
The event was held in a little restaurant at our school, so people came and went, or overheard the poetry (and the less-than-subtle announcements of convo credit) and came to check it out. I think that the way the information was presented was perfect – people could pick a poem to read out of a little book the group had compiled. Interspersed within the readings were very brief biographies of some of the poets. The audience and participants were learning about poetry in a completely non-threatening manner. The compilation of poems included everything from Elizabeth Barrett Browning to the lyrics of 80’s love ballads, and I think this helped people reevaluate their definitions or assumptions about what constitutes “poetry.” As they got up to jokingly dedicate a poem to their friends, the participants were learning that poetry doesn’t have to be scary. It doesn’t have to be overanalyzed and academic – it can be fun. While I doubt anyone left with a conscious new appreciation for poetry, I’m certain that most left with one of the most positive and least threatening poetry experiences of their lives.
Sunday, February 08, 2004
As I promised, a continuation of the e-poetry discussion...
My second major reason for saying that "e-poetry" is mixed media art and not just poetry is because poetry is all about words.
The gift of the poet is to create (in fewer words than a novel or an essay) with language. The entire basis of human speech is at the poet's disposal. They craft with words, be it the language of beauty and love, or death and despair, or rage and rebellion. The words themselves are enough - enough to stir emotion and passion, enough to paint a stunning visual image, enough to spark a connection, or in some cases enough to alienate and confuse.
Whatever the case, the poet has chosen his/her medium. And it is word. The problem with classifying digital poetics as true poetry is that it relies on far more than the written or spoken word. It uses images, sounds, speed, and many other aspects to influence the reading and reception of the piece. In some cases, the viewer is even forced to hunt for the words or work to "catch" them all. This to me immediately signifies a separation from the very medium, the very essence of poetry. Again, I feel that while digital poetics utilize poetry, they are not in and of themselves poems.
The digital poet has the ability to manipulate the viewer with outside aspects, and to put them in the same category as true poets is to undermine both the integrity of true poetry and the expansive creativity of these digital artists. E-poetics are a separate and unique form of art that should be recognized in its own way. While these artists use words - "poetry" if you will - their creations are not 100% poems.
One could remove the words from e-poetry and then perhaps assemble them on a page to be a poem. But doing so ruins the effectiveness of these pieces, and in fact ruins the creation of the artists. The words and pictures and sounds and interaction all combine together to form one unique work of art... but not a poem. In my opinion, that is.
My second major reason for saying that "e-poetry" is mixed media art and not just poetry is because poetry is all about words.
The gift of the poet is to create (in fewer words than a novel or an essay) with language. The entire basis of human speech is at the poet's disposal. They craft with words, be it the language of beauty and love, or death and despair, or rage and rebellion. The words themselves are enough - enough to stir emotion and passion, enough to paint a stunning visual image, enough to spark a connection, or in some cases enough to alienate and confuse.
Whatever the case, the poet has chosen his/her medium. And it is word. The problem with classifying digital poetics as true poetry is that it relies on far more than the written or spoken word. It uses images, sounds, speed, and many other aspects to influence the reading and reception of the piece. In some cases, the viewer is even forced to hunt for the words or work to "catch" them all. This to me immediately signifies a separation from the very medium, the very essence of poetry. Again, I feel that while digital poetics utilize poetry, they are not in and of themselves poems.
The digital poet has the ability to manipulate the viewer with outside aspects, and to put them in the same category as true poets is to undermine both the integrity of true poetry and the expansive creativity of these digital artists. E-poetics are a separate and unique form of art that should be recognized in its own way. While these artists use words - "poetry" if you will - their creations are not 100% poems.
One could remove the words from e-poetry and then perhaps assemble them on a page to be a poem. But doing so ruins the effectiveness of these pieces, and in fact ruins the creation of the artists. The words and pictures and sounds and interaction all combine together to form one unique work of art... but not a poem. In my opinion, that is.
Wednesday, February 04, 2004
Digital poetry. E-poetics. Whatever. Here's my deal.
I am not saying that these creations aren't creative, and I'm not saying that they aren't utilizing poetry. They obviously are. I would call them works of art. In fact, a visitor to a modern art museum such as Tate Modern in London would see media presentations akin to the E-poetry found all over the web. But that's just my argument - these are mixed media works of art. Not poetry.
I'm getting a little ahead of myself.
Over the past few days, I've been viewing several websites that host so-called "e-poetry" and "digital poetics." Some of these sites are:
http://www.poemsthatgo.com
http://www.poetspath.com/exhibits/digitalvistas.html
Looking through all these "digital vistas" is really interesting. Many are interactive, where the viewer can control aspects of the program by choosing links or moving the mouse. Most use music or audio enhancements. It is fun, and I encourage you to browse these sites and decide for yourself. But this is what I think:
Poetry has always had an oral aspect. In actuality, poems were being spoken and sung long before anyone was writing anything down - Homer's Odyssey, Beowulf. And through history poetry has retained this oral element. I would go so far as to say it has never been separate. Therefore, I would call this oral aspect of poetry a defining characteristic of poetry itself. Poetry that can not be shared orally is not poetry. There, I said it.
These digital poetics lack the ability to be shared completely by mouth. I can call my friend and read her Carl Sandburg's "Fog." I can type it here and you can read it for yourself:
The fog comes
on little cat feet.
It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.
Now, let me try to share an instance of "e-poetics" with you. I'll write as if I'm "reading" this poem to someone. It is titled "dear e.e." You can find it at: http://www.poemsthatgo.com/gallery/summer2001/ee/ee.htm
Well, there is a poem in it. I couldn't tell you what it is, exactly. The words go too fast for me to write them down, and I can't copy and paste from a flash video. I suppose if I watched it enough times and wrote a little each time I could get all the words down. It starts off like a letter, and the person is describing a dream where someone rearranged his/her apartment. Then it switches from gray pieces of paper to a quickly sliding scene. Letters of the alphabet fly by, fading in and out. There are drawings of a sink, a door, a refrigerator, something else... oh yeah, words pop up really quickly, I think they are part of the poem. If you hold your mouse over it they stay a little longer, but you have to keep pulling it back into your little window. If you press on "wake up" then it takes you to a bio of the artist/author. I guess that's the "end" of the dream sequence.
Now, did you get all that? And do you think it meant anything at all to my friend on the other end of the line? It's like trying to describe a work of art to someone who can't see it, and in fact that is exactly what I'm doing. To read a poem, to absorb it, you don't need to see anything. (I know there are some poems where viewing the shape on the page is important. Okay.) It is my opinion that these e-poems are not poems at all, but works of mixed media art combining graphic design with poetry. Using poetry, but not poetry in and of itself.
More on this later.
I am not saying that these creations aren't creative, and I'm not saying that they aren't utilizing poetry. They obviously are. I would call them works of art. In fact, a visitor to a modern art museum such as Tate Modern in London would see media presentations akin to the E-poetry found all over the web. But that's just my argument - these are mixed media works of art. Not poetry.
I'm getting a little ahead of myself.
Over the past few days, I've been viewing several websites that host so-called "e-poetry" and "digital poetics." Some of these sites are:
http://www.poemsthatgo.com
http://www.poetspath.com/exhibits/digitalvistas.html
Looking through all these "digital vistas" is really interesting. Many are interactive, where the viewer can control aspects of the program by choosing links or moving the mouse. Most use music or audio enhancements. It is fun, and I encourage you to browse these sites and decide for yourself. But this is what I think:
Poetry has always had an oral aspect. In actuality, poems were being spoken and sung long before anyone was writing anything down - Homer's Odyssey, Beowulf. And through history poetry has retained this oral element. I would go so far as to say it has never been separate. Therefore, I would call this oral aspect of poetry a defining characteristic of poetry itself. Poetry that can not be shared orally is not poetry. There, I said it.
These digital poetics lack the ability to be shared completely by mouth. I can call my friend and read her Carl Sandburg's "Fog." I can type it here and you can read it for yourself:
The fog comes
on little cat feet.
It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.
Now, let me try to share an instance of "e-poetics" with you. I'll write as if I'm "reading" this poem to someone. It is titled "dear e.e." You can find it at: http://www.poemsthatgo.com/gallery/summer2001/ee/ee.htm
Well, there is a poem in it. I couldn't tell you what it is, exactly. The words go too fast for me to write them down, and I can't copy and paste from a flash video. I suppose if I watched it enough times and wrote a little each time I could get all the words down. It starts off like a letter, and the person is describing a dream where someone rearranged his/her apartment. Then it switches from gray pieces of paper to a quickly sliding scene. Letters of the alphabet fly by, fading in and out. There are drawings of a sink, a door, a refrigerator, something else... oh yeah, words pop up really quickly, I think they are part of the poem. If you hold your mouse over it they stay a little longer, but you have to keep pulling it back into your little window. If you press on "wake up" then it takes you to a bio of the artist/author. I guess that's the "end" of the dream sequence.
Now, did you get all that? And do you think it meant anything at all to my friend on the other end of the line? It's like trying to describe a work of art to someone who can't see it, and in fact that is exactly what I'm doing. To read a poem, to absorb it, you don't need to see anything. (I know there are some poems where viewing the shape on the page is important. Okay.) It is my opinion that these e-poems are not poems at all, but works of mixed media art combining graphic design with poetry. Using poetry, but not poetry in and of itself.
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