Poetry and Poetics

Poem of the Week: Amanda J. Bradley

April 25, 2014

Poem of the Week: Amanda J. Bradley

By Brian Fanelli

Swallowed Whole Recently, on vacation, I saw a blue heron catch and eat a fish. In its middle, the fish was a good deal larger than the heron’s slender neck. Looking out subway windows, sparks fly, light up graffiti tags in this dark, rat-infested tunnel I am hurtling through. Ideas leap to mind: violence, poverty, […]

Apr
25
2014
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Swallowed Whole Recently, on vacation, I saw a blue heron catch and eat a fish. In its middle, the fish was a good deal larger than the heron’s slender neck. Looking out subway windows, sparks fly, light up graffiti tags in this dark, rat-infested tunnel I am hurtling through. Ideas leap to mind: violence, poverty, […]

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Poem of the Week

March 28, 2014

Poem of the Week

By Dawn Leas

Prayer for Topaz, 1942 Dear God, Mom said you are busy and don’t have time to listen to a little 8-year-old Negro girl from North Carolina and her foolishness, like praying for a box of candy. That would be selfish. But if it’s really important she said, then I should take it to you in […]

Mar
28
2014
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Prayer for Topaz, 1942 Dear God, Mom said you are busy and don’t have time to listen to a little 8-year-old Negro girl from North Carolina and her foolishness, like praying for a box of candy. That would be selfish. But if it’s really important she said, then I should take it to you in […]

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Poem of the Week: Ned Balbo

March 21, 2014

Poem of the Week: Ned Balbo

By Dawn Leas

First Thaw

Mar
21
2014
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First Thaw

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Homer to Gluck: First Lines

February 3, 2014

Homer to Gluck: First Lines

By Sarah Foil

Our twitter and tumblr followers shared their favorite first lines of poetry.

Feb
03
2014
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Our twitter and tumblr followers shared their favorite first lines of poetry.

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Didactic Sonnet

August 2, 2011

Didactic Sonnet

By Joe Weil

If Plato came back today and saw the workshop, craft obsessed nature of poetics, he’d give his approval, but not for reasons poets might like: Plato would approve because the stupidity of inspiration has been removed from the writing of poems.

Aug
02
2011
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If Plato came back today and saw the workshop, craft obsessed nature of poetics, he’d give his approval, but not for reasons poets might like: Plato would approve because the stupidity of inspiration has been removed from the writing of poems.

Read the full article →

Why Poetry is Sometimes Not Enough

May 25, 2011

Why Poetry is Sometimes Not Enough

By Emily Vogel

This evening at Catholic mass, while everyone bowed their heads to pray, I asked Jesus not only to help me be good to my husband and my family, but also what he thought about my poetry. I heard a voice, perhaps in my head, or perhaps funneled out the church ceiling which said, “your poetry will touch a few hearts, but it won’t help you in heaven.”

May
25
2011
Thumbnail image for Why Poetry is Sometimes Not Enough

This evening at Catholic mass, while everyone bowed their heads to pray, I asked Jesus not only to help me be good to my husband and my family, but also what he thought about my poetry. I heard a voice, perhaps in my head, or perhaps funneled out the church ceiling which said, “your poetry will touch a few hearts, but it won’t help you in heaven.”

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On My Pedagogical Approach (or something of the sort)

May 18, 2011

On My Pedagogical Approach (or something of the sort)

By Joe Weil

Digress, digress, follow the nose of your longing.

May
18
2011
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Digress, digress, follow the nose of your longing.

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On Poetry and Loss, Part 2

May 10, 2011

On Poetry and Loss, Part 2

By Joe Weil

I sometimes think African American “cool” and Irish humor developed out of an awareness of the truth that life is not merciful.

May
10
2011
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I sometimes think African American “cool” and Irish humor developed out of an awareness of the truth that life is not merciful.

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The Four Functions and The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

April 20, 2011

The Four Functions and The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

By Joe Weil

As Kafka said: “The crows maintain that a single crow could destroy the heavens; doubtless this is so, but it proves nothing against the heavens, for the heavens signify simply: the impossibility of crows.”

Apr
20
2011
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As Kafka said: “The crows maintain that a single crow could destroy the heavens; doubtless this is so, but it proves nothing against the heavens, for the heavens signify simply: the impossibility of crows.”

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Creative Stupidity

April 11, 2011

Creative Stupidity

By Joe Weil

Many people do not become artists not because they are stupid, but because they are incapable of suspending the thinking/feeling functions. They fail to become writers and musicians and painters because they cannot enter their highest stupidity.

Apr
11
2011
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Many people do not become artists not because they are stupid, but because they are incapable of suspending the thinking/feeling functions. They fail to become writers and musicians and painters because they cannot enter their highest stupidity.

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Kenneth Burke: Do you Eros into Logos? (with a note on Tu Fu)

March 18, 2011

Kenneth Burke: Do you Eros into Logos? (with a note on Tu Fu)

By Micah Towery

Poets who write for self-expression write awful poetry. They don’t seek advice but affirmation.

Mar
18
2011
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Poets who write for self-expression write awful poetry. They don’t seek advice but affirmation.

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Poetry Fix, Episode 20: Weldon Kees

February 5, 2011

Poetry Fix, Episode 20: Weldon Kees

By Chris Robinson

Mary Karr and Christopher Robinson discuss Weldon Kees’s poem “1926.”

Feb
05
2011
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Mary Karr and Christopher Robinson discuss Weldon Kees’s poem “1926.”

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Ur Poems: Emily Vogel

February 4, 2011

Ur Poems: Emily Vogel

By Emily Vogel

What Inspires Us To Write Poetry?

Feb
04
2011
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What Inspires Us To Write Poetry?

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Scattered Rhymes: Morgan Parker

January 29, 2011

Scattered Rhymes: Morgan Parker

By Ben Pease

Morgan Parker describes herself as equipped with the eyes of a surrealist, ears of an ethnographer, tongue of a cynical comedian, and heart of a brooding sixteen-year old.

Jan
29
2011
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Morgan Parker describes herself as equipped with the eyes of a surrealist, ears of an ethnographer, tongue of a cynical comedian, and heart of a brooding sixteen-year old.

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Writing Without an Idea

January 25, 2011

Writing Without an Idea

By Joe Weil

I don’t usually have an idea in mind when I begin to write.

Jan
25
2011
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I don’t usually have an idea in mind when I begin to write.

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Poetry Fix, Episode 19: Thomas Lux

January 14, 2011

Poetry Fix, Episode 19: Thomas Lux

By Chris Robinson

Mary Karr and Christopher Robinson discuss Thomas Lux’s poem “Tarantulas on the Lifebuoy.”

Jan
14
2011
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Mary Karr and Christopher Robinson discuss Thomas Lux’s poem “Tarantulas on the Lifebuoy.”

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