The Poetic Voice
I really enjoyed today's (Friday) class about poetic conventions. I think of poetry as an art form, expressing an idea in such a condensed manner is difficult and people that can do it well are truly literary artists. I never really think about the mechanics or science of poetry, such as meter. The device that fascinated me the most was the voice of the poet. Hearing a poetic piece straight from the horse's mouth, so to speak, is completely different than just reading to myself.
A Supermarket in California by Allen Ginsberg, which we listened to in class today is a perfect example of how reading a poem and hearing the poet read the poem aloud brings out two completely different interpretations. When reading the line, "I touch your book and dream of our odyssey in the supermarket and feel absurd" gave me the visual that Ginsberg was carrying around one of Whitman's books in the grocery store and wondering what Whitman would do in a supermarket. However, when I heard Ginsberg read this line aloud, his slightly creepy and stalker-ish voice gave the line a whole new meaning full of racy innuendos.
We Real Cool by Gwendolyn Brooks, which we also listened to in class was another surprising example. First of all, she explained her inspiration behind the poem before reading it so I understood that much. But, the jazzy voice in which she read the poem turned it into a piece that almost mocked the kids skipping school and trying to hard to be cool. This is something I did not pick up simply reading the short poem to myself.
I wonder if we could somehow hear classic poets, such as Shakespeare, preform their works today if they would take on a completely different meaning contrasting the way we interpret them today.
A Supermarket in California by Allen Ginsberg, which we listened to in class today is a perfect example of how reading a poem and hearing the poet read the poem aloud brings out two completely different interpretations. When reading the line, "I touch your book and dream of our odyssey in the supermarket and feel absurd" gave me the visual that Ginsberg was carrying around one of Whitman's books in the grocery store and wondering what Whitman would do in a supermarket. However, when I heard Ginsberg read this line aloud, his slightly creepy and stalker-ish voice gave the line a whole new meaning full of racy innuendos.
We Real Cool by Gwendolyn Brooks, which we also listened to in class was another surprising example. First of all, she explained her inspiration behind the poem before reading it so I understood that much. But, the jazzy voice in which she read the poem turned it into a piece that almost mocked the kids skipping school and trying to hard to be cool. This is something I did not pick up simply reading the short poem to myself.
I wonder if we could somehow hear classic poets, such as Shakespeare, preform their works today if they would take on a completely different meaning contrasting the way we interpret them today.
posted by Kristian at 3:32 PM
5 Comments:
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I totally agree with you, Kristian! I've always had misgivings about reading poems rather than listening to them, because you never really know what the poet intends for a certain part to mean. I guess that's where structure and all the more scientific elements of poetry come in -- with meter, rhyme scheme, punctuation, etc, the poet can at least have some control over how his/her poem gets read and interpreted. So it's almost as if the "science" of poetry acts as a signpost for the reader.
I also agree...I think that it's extremely important for readers of poetry to also listen to poems read aloud, because the author may intend for certain words to be stressed and certain breaks to be made. After I write a poem, I usually read it out loud because the way I want the piece to sound may in turn change the orientation of the words I have chosen. Thinking of poetry in this way means that only the creators--the actual poets have control over the "science" of the poetry--the way it is read which in turn plays a huge role in the way the poem is interpreted.
I also agree too, as well. It was actually fun to hear Ginsberg read his poem, he reminded me a lot of Mitch Hedberg, the comic. It was kind of like taking some weird, trippy, but oddly funny journey through some random guy's night. The reading of We Real Cool definitely surprised me, in my head I read it much definitely. She definitely made it sound more mocking towards the kids in the pool hall.
In my AP English class senior year, my teacher played us these great clips of some woman speaking her poem that had the constant refrain of "meat, FLESH, booones". She would pronounce it differebtly each time and then would interject everyday sayings that pertained to the body as she went on. Ginsberg was featured aswell, singing (with accordion accompanying!) "Father Death", a poem of his. Hearing the actual poet re-create their work for both themslevs and the audience by actaully performing can be an enlightening experience. Key words are revealed and the rhythm suddenly becomes everything.
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