Ezra Pound

Why E-books are not Books (and will probably change publishing)

by Micah Towery Society

Why E-books are not Books (and will probably change publishing)

By Micah Towery

Until now, many publishers have treated e-books as an extension of the book: hardcover, paperback, e-book. It’s not; it’s an entirely different medium.

Oct
24
2011
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Until now, many publishers have treated e-books as an extension of the book: hardcover, paperback, e-book. It’s not; it’s an entirely different medium.

Hindu Surrealism: George Kalamaras

by Brooks Lampe Poetry and Poetics

Hindu Surrealism: George Kalamaras

By Brooks Lampe

The two loves of Kalamaras’s life: Surrealism and Hindu mysticism (with a touch of rhetorical theory!).

Jun
22
2011
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The two loves of Kalamaras’s life: Surrealism and Hindu mysticism (with a touch of rhetorical theory!).

Frank Bidart’s “Golden State”: Resisting the Diachronic Urge

by Brooks Lampe Poetry and Poetics

Frank Bidart’s “Golden State”: Resisting the Diachronic Urge

By Brooks Lampe

Narrative seems to hold a privileged position in the hierarchy of meaning-making and we have subconsciously absorbed it as an the overarching structure for comprehending reality. So: what to do with the diachronic urge? Do episodic “image narratives” offer a viable alternative?

Mar
25
2011
Thumbnail image for Frank Bidart’s “Golden State”: Resisting the Diachronic Urge

Narrative seems to hold a privileged position in the hierarchy of meaning-making and we have subconsciously absorbed it as an the overarching structure for comprehending reality. So: what to do with the diachronic urge? Do episodic “image narratives” offer a viable alternative?

How Tu Fu Works

by Micah Towery Aesthetics

How Tu Fu Works

By Micah Towery

We perceive a break between images and feeling. But perhaps this break is artificial. We acknowledge that images can evoke feelings, perhaps that there is an “objective correlative” that can reliably evoke feelings. But perhaps what is being suggested here is that the category break is weaker than we think. The image (object) is already interpreted: “values are the way we see things.”

Mar
11
2011
Thumbnail image for How Tu Fu Works

We perceive a break between images and feeling. But perhaps this break is artificial. We acknowledge that images can evoke feelings, perhaps that there is an “objective correlative” that can reliably evoke feelings. But perhaps what is being suggested here is that the category break is weaker than we think. The image (object) is already interpreted: “values are the way we see things.”

Voices of the Fourth Generation

by Jonathan Wei Poetry and Poetics

Voices of the Fourth Generation

By Jonathan Wei

The translated poems seem more interested in criticizing Chinese society than aesthetic expression. In spite of these issues, the translators should be respected for their down-to-earth choice of the poems.

Mar
08
2011
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The translated poems seem more interested in criticizing Chinese society than aesthetic expression. In spite of these issues, the translators should be respected for their down-to-earth choice of the poems.

Literary Movements: Insider as Outsider and Token Renegade

by Joe Weil Academia

Literary Movements: Insider as Outsider and Token Renegade

By Joe Weil

When gaining a foothold among the establishment, it is important the so called “outsiders” or mavericks have a figure fully anchored within the establishment who can be “acceptable.”

Dec
29
2010
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When gaining a foothold among the establishment, it is important the so called “outsiders” or mavericks have a figure fully anchored within the establishment who can be “acceptable.”

Is Democracy Incompatible with the Humanities?

by Micah Towery Academia

Is Democracy Incompatible with the Humanities?

By Micah Towery

Humanities programs aren’t being attacked because the voters are cretinous philistines (though we poets & writers prefer to stroke our own egos in thinking so). The humanities are suffering an identity crisis and are being picked off as the weakest competitors for state funding.

Oct
15
2010
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Humanities programs aren’t being attacked because the voters are cretinous philistines (though we poets & writers prefer to stroke our own egos in thinking so). The humanities are suffering an identity crisis and are being picked off as the weakest competitors for state funding.

Towards A Theoria, Praxis, and Poesis of Modernist/Post Modernist Poetry (A Procedural)

by Joe Weil Poetry and Poetics

Towards A Theoria, Praxis, and Poesis of Modernist/Post Modernist Poetry (A Procedural)

By Joe Weil

Lyrical poetry can be very dense. It can even be “high gibberish” (a form of ecstatic speech that does not yield readily to a standard meaning, but may create a mood, an orver all emotional or intellectual atmosphere). It does not usually explain. It is not prone to giving information in an overt and easy way. Why does it beat around the bush? Get to it! Say what you mean! Many a person has turned away from lyric poetry because it refuses to do the one thing people seem to insist on: get to the point! This is exactly where modern poetry wanted poesis to go—to the thing, the object, the point.

Jun
28
2010
Thumbnail image for Towards A Theoria, Praxis, and Poesis of Modernist/Post Modernist Poetry (A Procedural)

Lyrical poetry can be very dense. It can even be “high gibberish” (a form of ecstatic speech that does not yield readily to a standard meaning, but may create a mood, an orver all emotional or intellectual atmosphere). It does not usually explain. It is not prone to giving information in an overt and easy way. Why does it beat around the bush? Get to it! Say what you mean! Many a person has turned away from lyric poetry because it refuses to do the one thing people seem to insist on: get to the point! This is exactly where modern poetry wanted poesis to go—to the thing, the object, the point.

Blogging through Grossman, Part 3: Poetic Promiscuity.

by Micah Towery Art

Blogging through Grossman, Part 3: Poetic Promiscuity.

By Micah Towery

We recent poets have two great tools at our disposal: freedom of poetic license, and freedom of publishing. Generally, we can say whatever we want, and get a significant number of people to hear what we have to say. The question is whether this freedom has led to better poetry or degeneration. Perhaps that’s not the best way to put it. The question should be, even if somebody is doing something amazing and new in poetry, would we even see it? Will we travel all this way to find that we really did need the gatekeepers of poetry??

Mar
02
2010
Thumbnail image for Blogging through Grossman, Part 3: Poetic Promiscuity.

We recent poets have two great tools at our disposal: freedom of poetic license, and freedom of publishing. Generally, we can say whatever we want, and get a significant number of people to hear what we have to say. The question is whether this freedom has led to better poetry or degeneration. Perhaps that’s not the best way to put it. The question should be, even if somebody is doing something amazing and new in poetry, would we even see it? Will we travel all this way to find that we really did need the gatekeepers of poetry??

Some Books on My Mind, or {Potential} Purchases of Imperishables

by Adam Fitzgerald Art

Some Books on My Mind, or {Potential} Purchases of Imperishables

By Adam Fitzgerald

Hands up, anyone who has read the whole of Herodotus and the whole of Thucydides! And Saint-Simon? And Cardinal de Retz? But even the great nineteenth-century cycles of novels are more often talked about than read.

Feb
21
2010
Thumbnail image for Some Books on My Mind, or {Potential} Purchases of Imperishables

Hands up, anyone who has read the whole of Herodotus and the whole of Thucydides! And Saint-Simon? And Cardinal de Retz? But even the great nineteenth-century cycles of novels are more often talked about than read.