And this is how poetry derives its power, its agency, by the ways it can direct the eye. But the poet has a different toolkit from a visual artist. The world of a poem builds incrementally: it grows, it accretes.
We suffer, after all, not because of the ways we speak, but because of the ways we exclude ourselves with internalized external narratives about how different we feel from others.
In Episode 13 of The Rumpus Late Nite Poetry Show, Rick Barot discusses his newest collection, Chord, tone in poetry, and the selfies Bishop might've posted.
Speaking of emotion, which you shouldn’t, saying the word “emotional” out loud is the oral equivalent of running your tampon up a flagpole in the middle of a law firm.
The Rumpus Poetry Book Club chats with Thorpe Moeckel about his new book Arcadia Road, the challenge of writing long poems, raising twins, and camo thongs.
“You were promised to the religion,” Carlos Aldama says, his eyes watery and somber. “One of your parents said, ‘Mi hija lo paga.’” My daughter will pay.