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On 03/06/07, MC Ward <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Kasper, I think it's always a surprise when tastes > differ. If Anny and I have an enthusiastic response to > Katia's poems, we implicitly opine that we think we're > right--as I'm sure you believe your own position to be > the right one. No surprise _there_! > > Anny, I had no idea you'd done so much to bring the > poems to attention. Thanks on my own behalf and that > of other fans. > > Candice believing one's taste to be the right one is pompous, & a fallacy whatsmore. I never claim 'truth' or 'correctness' in my views; if that impression is given off, it's because I don't like to use language that is constantly conditional & explanatory & apologetic when discussing matters of taste. if I did enjoy it, I would probably cause fewer eyebrows to be raised on this list (whether in amusement or in indignation). maybe what I should have said was that, based on a BRIEF look at her small collection of work on that page, Kapovich's style is in contrast with the styles & modes of poetry that I've most concerned myself with. also, her narrative proselike style is something that makes warning-bells ring in me because I've read so much contemporary poetry written in a prosaic drone that I've all but gone off it entirely. the best poetry, in my OPINION (ha), is that which has music. but I'm glad you called me on my opinion, since I hadn't actually backed it up with anything (not that I should need to, & I don't really like the passive aggression I keep getting when I differ in opinion with some of you); I took a longer look, & did find several poems of hers that I liked. 'A Paper Plane to Nowhere' (which was very touching) & 'The Landscape of a Room' for instance. the imagery does glimpse at a magical within the daily, of human experience. plus they are not entirely without music. to be honest, another thing that tends to put me off is when a poet writes only about themselves (all writers write from their own experience, that isn't what I mean), but Kapovich's voice may have a quality that neutralises the implicit self-aggrandisement of 'talking about yourself'. I'm not sure. and this actually opens another issue for me, concerning poetry as a whole: my own writing has a way of being rather detached, & I think this has to do with my conception of poetry in general AS somewhat detached. the experiencer has always felt like something or a shaman to me, or something/one high & important; possibly because I consider myself attached & attracted by the senses & everything they relay to us. the first person singular pronoun (or plural for that matter) has often made me queasy. the reason for THAT, I've postulated recently, is that a serious, sombre voice can't help but make the first person sound ridiculous (more often than not, that is). it's for this reason that I've started trying to involve the lighthearted or even comical in my writing; not as the driving force, which for me is usually still revelry or awe, but as an injected, grounding tone that emerges now & then -- and gives the otherwise sincere tone all the more credibility. this is the theory. KS