Whoah there buzzkill!
I'm not even going to approach the subject of why she used different languages in her poetry, because, when I wrote poetry in Eng313, I used Spanish as well. I didn't do it to be elitist, but I did it because I think Spanish is a beautiful language and it is a part of me now. (and it is spoken in the place I was born)
So, what I am going to approach is modern poetry in general. Modern poetry. Hmm. I really want to know: Does all poetry today have to have some political message? Does it always have to be on horrifying subjects and depressing topics? Human trafficking, Asian Fetishes, War, Nuclear tests, The Best Minds of your hippy generation being wasted. Dia De la Muerte, more War. It seems the majority of the poetry I have been assigned to read while at UH, excluding Sappho, is either talking about a people wronged, or an individual person's suffering. What the hell happened to love poetry? What happened to poetry about.. GOOD STUFF HAPPENING IN YOUR LIFE?! I don't mean to complain, because that makes me a hypocrite for what I am about to say, but it seems all the poetry I read is someone COMPLAINING about how shitty their world is. Yes, I know the world can be a horrific place, but not everyone is suffering. Are the only ones inspired to write poetry... the ones that are suffering?
I guess I don't have much to say about the book in particular. There don't seem to be too many happy poems in it. I guess I wouldn't be too happy either, if I were a poet. I hear it doesn't pay very well. :-P LOL
So, what I am going to approach is modern poetry in general. Modern poetry. Hmm. I really want to know: Does all poetry today have to have some political message? Does it always have to be on horrifying subjects and depressing topics? Human trafficking, Asian Fetishes, War, Nuclear tests, The Best Minds of your hippy generation being wasted. Dia De la Muerte, more War. It seems the majority of the poetry I have been assigned to read while at UH, excluding Sappho, is either talking about a people wronged, or an individual person's suffering. What the hell happened to love poetry? What happened to poetry about.. GOOD STUFF HAPPENING IN YOUR LIFE?! I don't mean to complain, because that makes me a hypocrite for what I am about to say, but it seems all the poetry I read is someone COMPLAINING about how shitty their world is. Yes, I know the world can be a horrific place, but not everyone is suffering. Are the only ones inspired to write poetry... the ones that are suffering?
I guess I don't have much to say about the book in particular. There don't seem to be too many happy poems in it. I guess I wouldn't be too happy either, if I were a poet. I hear it doesn't pay very well. :-P LOL
posted by Joshua at 4:07 AM
2 Comments:
Also I do think there is the angst artist stereotype that is so often associated with writers that they have assimilated into subconsciously.
Because how could one write about roses when the world is filled with angry homeless Vietnam veterans?
I think there's a reason why there was so much interest in poetry suddenly after 9/11; poetry is a place where we are (still) allowed to think and meditate on deep issues, and not to look for entertainment or avoidance. I would say again that, while this book is "heavy," it is also beautiful, so look for the beauty in the language and the images. That's where we find consolation, inspiration, uplift.
aloha, sms
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