Constraints? Fine; we can make some up.
Trad form? fine, if you work it hard & with intent (I can name some
today who do, but a lot of the so-called "New Formalists' are
boring...).
I've quoted Bowering on formalism too often here to do it again, but
as Pound said, in the hands of someone who knows what s/he's doing
free verse is not 'free'....
Yes, sure, the alphabet's the first constraint, but then look what Dr
Seuss did with that! (bpnichol loved him for going beyond Z...).
Doug
On 22-Jun-10, at 3:18 PM, Uche Ogbuji wrote:
> Again I think you could say that such constraints are there in every
> aspect
> of language, from alphabets to phonetics, through grammar, and so on.
>
> It just strikes me that the idea of "trapped" is so often directed
> specifically at form by champions of free verse. I don't think I've
> ever
> heard of a bad free verse stylist that they would be better off
> writing in
> form, though I agree with your reasoning, John, that form giveth and
> it also
> taketh away. I sense in the asymmetry of such comments as Douglas's
> too
> little recognition of what it giveth.
>
> --Uche
Douglas Barbour
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http://www.ualberta.ca/~dbarbour/
Latest books:
Continuations (with Sheila E Murphy)
http://www.uap.ualberta.ca/UAP.asp?LID=41&bookID=664
Wednesdays'
http://abovegroundpress.blogspot.com/2008/03/new-from-aboveground-press_10.html
because I want to die
writing Haiku
or, better,
long lines, clean and syllabic as knotted bamboo. Yes!
Phyllis Webb
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