I am not a big fan of poems. I find them very hard to write and sometimes to understand. Sometimes I wonder while I'm reading how does the relate or go together for example in Matthew Dickman's poem Slow Dance He writes one thing and then writes about other things, to me it seems like they wont go together but somehow in the end they do connect. I am really curious as to why he always writes about his brother.
I thought the Sad Little Outlaw was an interesting poem. The first three lines really paints a picture for me. He is talking about him being the outlaw tied against a tree and his brother galloping with a broom (his horse) and a plastic fake gun. So it seems like a good childhood memory where him and his brother play together but then in line four he says "I was always being left behind" so his brother didn't want him around? Now I'm confused on what is going on. Then I am lost for the rest of the poem. I like to think I am some what creative but poems seem to often lose me.
Ashley S
reading his poems Matthew does seem to jump around, after the first few I realized this must be his style. When I first started reading and writing poetry years ago it was all about the rhyme, now I'm past that but without the rhyme something must hold the poem together. Somehow I feel I'm not getting his angle or maybe because this is the first time reading his stuff I'm a little perplexed, I'm sure we will discuss this in class.
ReplyDeleteCindy D.
I think the free flowing form of these poems makes them feel more like oral retellings, like stories. His poetry is very diverse and in a lot of ways, it feels very human. But like you, I do have a little trouble getting into poetry. It isn't my favorite outlet in writing, and a lot of the time I have no interest in its format.
ReplyDeleteI think the reason so many people get lost with poetry is that poetry is wide open: there are too many interpretations. I guess that can be said for prose, but poetry had the added hurdle of format. It does help to have multiple perspective and out class is probably the best environment to raise some of these questions.
-Samantha Markey
I've always had an appreciation for poetry though for a great deal of time I didn't care for it. People must see something in it to read it but there's no story and I don't get to keep up with a protagonist! But, when I began to analyze poetry I gained a greater appreciation for the purposeful nature of the art. This feeling grew when I was made to go on and write many poems, I had to pick and choose what idea I wanted to express.
ReplyDeletePoems aren't hurricanes or sunny days, they're a gentle breeze here and gone in an instant.
I think that you need to go through a period with poetry before you can actually like it; I had to analyze, discuss, and write it!
~Nitesh Arora