Poems discussed July 29

We started the session with the two poems Mary shared by two young people -- one a 5th grader, slated for failure,
but who found a refrain and some hope, describing his world of fighting and guns, and in spite of feeling his soft bones turning to stone, his innocence and hope come through. For the anonymous author who wrote "Powerless" whose middle name is Doubt and whose family shares the last name Fear, with family members called addiction, revenge, fury, it is both an address to our personal lives riddled by all that contributes to a feeling of helplessness, as well as "the broken house" of our society in which we live, or Western Civilization. (to quote Martin.)

We listened to the two clips sent with the poems for July 22 which provoked a very interesting discussion about who the AUDIENCE is, how a poem can be successful, and why angry rants are difficult. It would be interesting indeed to know if someone has written a thesis about anger -- how individuals, societies, different civilizations, deal with it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLHdSovhzcA
Steve Connell : I am American http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWNdIA4FG6Q
‪http://www.obamatakesamericaback.com‬‬

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzY2-GRDiPM
Saul Williams “Coded Language Whereas...

Lots of good rhetorical power, juxtaposition, repetition, interesting leaps from the Declaration of Independence to what a God would do to an uncivilized display of abuse. The monotone of the anaphoric "whereas" hammers tediously, pinning our ears.

What a difference to read two "classic poems" -- the delight of the music of Auden's "Look Stranger now"
and A.E. Stallings, Prelude. The latter also was disconcerting -- using rhyme and form, rational thinking but with an awkward discomfort which starts with refuting explanations :
No, no. It is something else. It is something raw
That suddenly falls
Upon me at the start, like loss of awe—
The vertigo of possibility—
The pictures I don't see,
The open strings, the perfect intervals.


Great discussion about intuitive thinking, perfect moments -- what completely engrosses us -- and how we try to pin it down in paint, with words, in music.