A Message from the President, May 2009
by John Quinn, ISPS President
One more lecture on poetry, then I'll shut up. As I step down as president, I want to thank you for abiding by an old man's rants.
Poetry's roots are in music. Poetry should be pleasant to read -- and to hear. Remember that, next time you are at a reading. Good poetry, like good music, depends on image, sound and meter. Too many times at poetry readings I listen to what the poet thinks is great because of content or personal experience, but the presentation comes across as arid, remote and incomprehensible.
Wallace Stevens said, "The poet should find the words that will speak to the delicatest ear of its modern listeners, echoing what it wants to hear but cannot articulate for itself. The poet, in the act of the poem, finds the sufficing words and for the audience and they allow the listeners to hear what is in their ear, their mind. As a result, the emotions of speaking and listening, of poet as actor and listeners as audience, should become one."
In other words the poem should mean something to the audience, not just the poet. The poet uses image, sound and meter to transit to the listener’s reality. Some poets articulate in esoteric vocabulary, obscure phrases and arcane allusions. (The previous sentence is a good example of this.) Their presentation is a sing-song monotone, a gentle hum from the front of the room. The audience is lost -- and extremely bored.
T. S. Eliot's "Love Song of Alfred J Prufrock" is an example of esoteric vocabulary, obscure phrases and arcane allusions -- but because of the music (image, sound and meter) it is ready for prime time. Reading it sends the reader scrambling for the dictionary (think: estaminet) and a Latin text -- but it resonates with most audiences because it uses sound, meter and common images ("Let us go then you and I ... through half deserted streets ... muttering retreats") to form a great poem, to take his audience on a great journey.
So in closing all I want to say is, "think music!" and thanks.
john quinn
quinn70@comcast.net
On Sunday, July 26, Brewed Poets Society will present Last Sunday of the Month Readings at Brewed Awakening, 19 W Quincy, Westmont. Lots of open mic.
Cover charge $5, includes coffee or tea and pastry. Noon till 12:30; Poetry 12:30-2:00 p.m.
