John: This is one hell of a long questionnaire. Do I assume correctly that
Australian poets have more free time than the rest of us?


1. Is it required of poets who want to be in your chapter that they answer
the questions?

2. Does the potential reward (however perceived) of inclusion influence the
answers?

3. How do you think the poets perceive the rewards of inclusion?

4. Wouldn't most of the answers be apparent from the poetry?

12. If the answers aren't apparent from the poetry do they  matter?

9. Do they matter more than the poetry?

6. If the answers are at odds with the poetry how would that be significant?

15. Aren't the answers to a degree predetermined, perhaps coerced, by the
way you frame your questions?

12. By the terminology in which you cast them?

13. How do you plan to analyze the answers, quantitatively, qualitatively
or both?

17. What is the size of your survey population, and do you really think you
can draw useful inferences from that small a sample?

5. Is there a control group? How is it defined?

14. Do you think that the length of the questionnaire might influence the
state of mind of the poets, and hence their answers?

14. What other variables do you think you may not have addressed?


At 06:30 PM 12/20/2000 +0000, John Kinsella wrote:
>this might be of interest to the list: it's the list of questions i
>recently sent to the poets i have written about in that chapter. i also
>sent the material to a novelist who belongs textually in more than one
>zone.
>
>best,
>jk
>
>____________________
>
>
>
>dear spatial geographers and others
>
>i need urgent answers to these questions. your help would be greatly
>appreciated. some of the questions are problematic, but that's part of the
>take. i will be using your answers in a large essay on australian poetry i
>am attempting to complete. thanks.
>
>best,
>jk
>
>
>1. What do you understand by "community" with regard to poetry and poetic
>practice? I'm particularly interested in notions of 'participation'.
>
>2. How do you view "internationalism" in poetry.
>
>3. Comment on spatiality and text.
>
>4. It is said: "all poetry is political'. Please comment.
>
>5. Is the whole built out of fragments? Should 'wholeness' be resisted. If
>so, why? Does technique restrain the poem?
>
>6. Is poetry definable? Comment on liminality.
>
>7. Are there fixed points in every poem? What are a poems co-ordinates?
>
>8. 'Natural', 'artificial', 'rural', 'urban': how do you map these spaces
>in your poetry.
>
>9. Discuss your intertextual lines of communication. And how this might
>attach to ideas of community and participation.
>
>10. What is Australian poetry?
>
>11. Consider questions of 'colonisation' and 'appropriation' in your own
>work and that of those you are 'presented' amongst.
>
>12. What do you see as being relevant divisions and contentions between
>groups of Australian poets? Are there zones and 'hot spots', realms of
>influence and divisiveness?
>
>13. Has the funding and prize culture influenced your working methods.
>
>14. Discuss the notion of 'influence' and of 'influence' on your work?
>
>15. Is there a new lyricism? Where goes the 'lyrical I' now?
>
>16. Is publication relevant? How do you select (or target) publishing
>fields?
>
>17. What does the book mean?
>
>18. Is it Australian English you write in/with? What of national identity
>and your work. What of nationalism? What of poetries in languages other
>than English in Australia.
>
>19. Discuss 'gender' and your work.
>
>20. Are you an explorer? A settler? An invader?
>
>21: Discuss "grammar" and "editing" in terms of your work.
>
>
>    John Kinsella
>
>