This is the handout we'll be discussing tonight. There'll be time to scan over it during the session, then we can pick a few to focus on.
Industry, the Age of Dinosaurs, and the End of Civilization by Bobby Darling
they call this the badland’s baby
but it used to be bayou
the shore of an inland sea
and i can still hear you coming
what foul beast stalks this way
the night is dim
but i catch the scent of your arrogance
as you rear your head i can see your eyes gleaming
catching light from the moon
like a pair of knives
to cut me down
yeah there is a hole in the world
and the light is leaking out
spilling like water
and i can still hear you coming
what new devilry is this?
i saw you rise
and creep across the sky
and all night as if led
you came behind
eating all the stars
we dig to fid
why the light left
skulls and bone
rock and stone
whisper stories
tales of glory
and a tragic fall from grace
we’re still falling
just like the dinosaurs
what makes you think we’ll end up any different
|
Nate Barcalow from Finch
Veins coarse, wet, abrasive. Dimwitted
Happiness
On and on about the nerverminds of Me
Scratch your bloody itch-
This is The Tourniquet-
One more for Innocence, with a sad face
Looking at this…
Well, what’s left of It.
Never a dull moment
A Lonely Desert Night to build a Fire
Warm this abandoned meat-
Reckless and ignorant
A Victim of black and white
Earnest Psychotics/Parasitic Idiotics
BY EVAN JEWETT
it is nigh time for the cutting of ropes
in backwards movies I saw my mistakes
but my heart does not agree with the logically sound
sycophantic ploys to gain entry
into my complicated machinery
while I was caught up in chivalry
you were becoming my circuitry
|
Dan Arnold from A Static Lullaby
…Of course I hear you!
You’re the taste upon my lips when I wake.
Sometimes you’re the only faith I have.
Searching…always searching for more.
I’m enslaved by you, but you make me feel as free as can be.
I want to touch you.
I’ll catch your scent on the air and my feet don’t
stop, they can’t stop! We must keep dancing in your name!
M U S I C
The only air I breathe.
Aaron Pillar from The Appleseed Cast
in the rain, sing a song, in your head….so secret life, in your
eyes, eyes, its alright…. so be surprised, by the lullabies, that keep us in line, tonight.
These are some of the things we talked about during this session concerning the handout. A lot of it contains my personal observations, but I'll post them here as food for thought :)
ReplyDeleteDan Arnold from A Static Lullaby
The first thing that seems immediately noticeable about the poem is its structure, especially the first and last lines. It isn’t often that a poet begins with an ellipses, and it is almost less often that a poet creates a sure sense of dialog within the first line. The interesting thing to note, is these poets are artists and musicians first—and this is just another aspect of their creative expression. I believe this poem really accesses and challenges the concept of perspective, including apostrophe. It is common for apostrophe to be used beside a female gender as with vehicles, objects, and etc. The poet creates this familiar sense of apostrophe by naming Music as his female audience, and creating an undeniable, tempting presence for her.
Structure: One short stanza followed by a small couplet at the end. Arnold plays with punctuation and visual design within the poem by separating the last two lines from the first stanza, and bravely opening the first line of the poem with an ellipses sandwiched by a bold exclamation mark.
Something to think about: Would the poem be the same without the visual attributes? How would the poem seem different if Arnold changed the way he presented the opening line of the poem?
Industry, the Age of Dinosaurs, and the End of Civilization by Bobby Darling
This poem is entertainingly kooky and uses unconventional descriptions to create a post societal world that rests upon the past dinosaur extinction. The speaker states that the world’s fate is analogous to what the dinosaurs suffered, that we will eventually be on the brink of extinction, but the content before that analogy remains very aesthetic, and even dream-like. There is a noticeable internal rhythm present in the poem that begins with the first two lines, “they call this the badland’s baby/ but it used to be bayou.” In the poem, words roll off the tongue with ease because of the soft consonance present in several lines. When lines are abrupt and enjambed so that a line leaks into the next to finish a full sentence, a sense of urgency and anxiousness could be created. However, even though there are lines that are visually cut short, there is still a consistent sense of rhythm and fluidity throughout the poem.
Structure: the poem is created with one long stanza—one that draws the eye down the page in a vertical column. In this way, the structure is simple and the poet focuses more on content.
Question I posed: Who do you think the speaker is addressing in the poem as he says, “you?”
Earnest Psychotics/Parasitic Idiotics by Evan Jewett
ReplyDeleteThe speaker begins with an earnest statement, that it is “nigh time for the cutting of ropes,” which opens the poem up with a strong declaration. One of the great things about poetry is the possibility of covering so much with so little text, and that is accomplished with this poem. The speaker gets right to the point, specifying what he feels as he confesses what seems to be guilt.
Structure: the first thing noticeable about the poem is its short structure, and its unusual lack of punctuation, which also includes capitalization beginning with the first line. The poem is short and sweet, just not in the traditional or expectable sense. The poem contains a moderate rhyme scheme that begins with the fourth line, precisely separating the poem by its middle.
The line “into my complicated machinery” is a very unconventional statement, one that describes the speaker’s emotional and physical state as being inanimate. This really creates a contrast within the poem which contains many lifelike, strong emotional elements.
Aaron Pillar from The Appleseed Cast
If there ever was a modest napkin poem, I imagine this would be it—in the positive sense. The poem is short, even shorter than a Haiku but manages to get a message across to the reader. The poem is very lyrical, and the musical tone seems to be the core of the material. This artist is very true to his nature and creates something that characteristically resembles a song—something lyrical poetry gains its roots from. The relationship between poetry and lyric is ever existent with this poem and that’s what makes it unique.