on 13/8/02 9:44 PM, maria fletcher at [log in to unmask] wrote:
> Hi Jill - the stock response - simply as witnessed by Adam's post - the
> passion - what I feel, subjectively, is missing from the poetry that I
> am currently reading - perhaps my mistake is to search in contemporary
> poetry for work that deals with simple acts of human kindness;
> community; love - endurance and the willingness to bear hardship without
> blame - the understanding of trust that often comes from living outside
> the urbane.
Hi Maria,
Am just back from 'the bush' (not sure that Bundanon really counts, but my
shoes are dusty and the wombats were walking) so thanks for responding and
interested to see what others are saying also.
So, first of all, I'm not sure how Adam's is 'the stock response'. What is
the stock response? Is it mine?
About what you seem to be saying (but I'm happy to be corrected) - I'm
wondering if we're back to that old one about Sydney vs The Bush, the urban
against nature and all that. You know, the one where anything to do with
cities is superficial and corrupt while anything about the non-urban closer
to real, or 'natural', or fine, or something. I'm hoping not. That's the Les
Murray line (remember his disagreement with Peter Porter over this).
Are you saying that all Australian urban poets don't write about hardship or
love, or, at least not with passion, but rather, with 'cringe' (I still
don't quite get what you mean by that, in this context)? Do you equate this
'cringe' with another thing you also said: "the urbane and inwardly
reflective nature of much contemporary poetry"? Or do you think we're all
try to pretend we live in New York or Paris?
I'm glad that Douglas came in to say:
>Certainly some of the 'urbane' (& urban) Australian poets I read neither
>lose themselves simply in the landscape nor 'cringe.'
I guess I will be arguing this one till I'm blue in the face, but - I live
in a city, that's my landscape (I also write about other things, of course).
I find all sorts of things there that I argue with, get passionate about
and, yes, reflect on in my work. And, yes, I confess, I'm pretty aware of
ironies as well. But I'd do that anywhere I was. (And I continually find it
odd that Australians have a problem with anything reflective, but maybe I'm
misunderstanding you here as well.)
I have no idea what contemporary Australian poets you are referring to. Doug
mentioned some of us. Perhaps it would help if you mentioned some that
particularly let you down.
It's easy to dismiss people just because they may have done a creative
writing course (Anny's comment about "pre-packed material coming from
specialized courses" makes a lot of assumptions about the courses and what
anyone may or may not do outside, before or after such a course) rather than
talking about their work (do we dismiss artists who've done art classes as
easily?) But there are creative writing course run in regional unis and
colleges. Maybe they are turning out more 'authentic' poets.
Look, I'm not an apologist for creative writing courses nor will I pretend
I've not done the odd poetry workshop (nor bother to defend it) but, like
Doug, I'm wondering who or what you are resisting. Resistance is fine, of
course. I'm obviously doing it as well, but I'm still not quite clear what
you are having the problem with and hence this quizzical, if not passionate,
response.
Best,
Jill
_________________________________
Jill Jones
50 Ruby Street
Marrickville NSW 2204
AUSTRALIA
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http://homepages.ihug.com.au/~jpjones
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