[lit-ideas] Helm and Geary and Speranza on Poetry
- From: Jlsperanza@xxxxxxx
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 2 Jan 2010 19:17:10 EST
I misplaced Helm's longish (it's me saying that, ha) recent post on poetry.
I misplaced some of Geary's poetry. I misplaced my socks.
Helm's post was, from what I recall about it, Heidegger on poetry. As
McEvoy queried, Heidegger as possibly ridiculed in school, and called "Heidi".
As Helm notes, only a gay man has not been knocked down by a woman.
Geary thinks poetry is essentially Heideggerian, but then since his German
does not cum naturally to him, what can he say.
The best poets are said to be German: Holderin, etc.
Poetry is 'rhyme', not reason. I never understood it; neither does my
mother. "I rather read a novel," she says. And I know she _doesn't_ read
novels,
so there.
"The Waste Land" by Eliot, was basically a waste. In the DVD -- I own this
film club, "I'll wait for the film version" -- "Tom and Viv", Viv is
credited with the best lines in Waste Land including title, and "April is the
most cruel [sic] of months", which Eliot misunderstood, as "April is a sick
cruellest month".
In general, poetry thrived in Lesbos -- Sappho and Alcepius. There was a
recent controversy and scandal in Lesbos. A man, a Lesbian, sued the
government for the use of "Lesbian". He lost it.
Poetry in Greece was either sung to the lyre, or to the flute. Alcebiades
preferred the lyre, "You cannot recite, for one, while playing the Panic
Flute; plus it sucks up your cheeks". He meant his face-cheeks.
Prosody, in Greek, meant "for song". All metrics, in the 'rhyme' sense, is
poetical.
Oddly, neither the Romans nor the Greeks believed in _rhyme_: no such
thing. Rhyme originally meant 'rhythmos' which the Greeks and Romans did
believe
in.
The scansion of a poem is all that matters.
McEvoy who writes limerick for a living (not his, fortunately) knows about
this. Cf. his poor attempt at scansion, on the "saucy implicature".
The non-Western peoples don't really have poetry as we know it. Only as
they know it, but other than McCreery who cares for what they know _it_. In
particular, Japanese poetry can be a real bore especially for those who don't
have a good ear for Japanese.
If Poetry were such rhyme (and no reason) shouldn't we be fascinated by
Japanese poetry?
Borges was. He was blind and hated to travel. His mistress, though, took
him EVERYWHERE. Since she is a Jap(anese), she had him sit for HOURS
witnessing "Noh" versed theatre in Tokyo and other places in Japan. He yawned
to
no end, and would often interrupt other audience members (he was blind)
when, due to his prostrate problem, having to rush for the toilet every five.
Cheers,
J. L. Speranza
Etc.
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