Joanna and Doug,
I agree with a number of these points too. But I do think that poetry does make a difference, if not in the sense of stopping a bomb or persuading the politician who has decided to drop a bomb. Surely this is partly dependent upon what constitutes a difference? In an absolute sense, when one wishes to prevent a war, poetry may not stop that outbreak, though, ironically, poetry may be involved in beginning a war. I'm thinking here of my recent visit to the Key West Literary Seminar where most of the events were held in the Juan Carlos auditorium, a place famous because it is where Marti, the Cuban poet, is creditted with having launched the battle for Cuban independence from Spain. In a way, the idea of poetry's uselessness is connected to the idea of poetry's harmlessness. Once it is granted any measure of efficacy, it becomes capable of harm. And many times my own thought has tended in this direction, for instance, the related encounter of the Gestapo officer who finding his old and Jewish literature professor in the line to the ovens had a cheerful conversation while reciting Rilke from memory. I remember the poet, Gregory Orr, anguishing over this at some length, a lover of Rilke's work, he was unable to reconcile that those poems could be recited in that context without causing a twitch of conscience or spasm of doubt in the poem's reciter. But that is perhaps another issue, or, well, perhaps not another issue, but one that opens too many doors to be entered all at once. I do think poetry can make a great difference to the individual, that the encounter with a poem or a poet can alter one's life. I think in some of this there is a kind of lament that we are not gods, but that we are only individual singers. If we were gods, if we had indeed the power that we sense in poetry, then we could make a great enough difference to prevent wars or alter politician's minds. But we are only mortal and solitary singers, and so our songs touch what is most mortal and solitary in another, but to say that is no difference? it is a great difference, I think anyway,
Best,
Rebecca
Rebecca Seiferle
www.thedrunkenboat.com
-------Original Message-------
From: Joanna Boulter <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: 03/30/03 04:55 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: idea
>
> Doug, I do agree with the political points raised in the bulk of your
posting. But I am worried by your opening and closing paragraphs. A propos
of talking about poetry just now, you say:
> But this is difficult to do when a war that has caused so much
dissension
concerning its value is ongoing.
and then
> ...it would be good to talk about poetry alone, but perhaps it's not
possible at this time.
This seems to me a far more extreme stance than the famous _Poetry makes
nothing happen.
I read that first statement of yours as saying that this war, more than
any
others, has actually devalued poetry. Why this particular one? No other
war
that I can think of has had anything like that effect. Even if we don't
want
to back to WWI and Owen, Denise Levertov has been mentioned very recently
on
this list for her passionate anti-Vietnam war poetry, which not only spoke
to opinion at the time but lives on as a vivid and still-vital message.
If poets and lovers of poetry themselves start saying that it isn't
possible
to talk about poetry in a time of war, then we may as well burn all the
books now.
I do realise that your point hinges on the words _poetry alone_ . But I
believe we all need its solace and courage from time to time.
Joanna
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