tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post5625743803737794492..comments2024-02-05T15:01:44.563-05:00Comments on Cleveland Poetics: a place for cleveland's writers and readers: Inaugural Poem by Elizabeth Alexandermichael salingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14717310933948991992noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-49480655237946039292009-01-22T15:58:00.000-05:002009-01-22T15:58:00.000-05:00I had no issues with the poem itself, but was terr...I had no issues with the poem itself, but was terribly disappointed in her delivery...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-45686352180131011732009-01-22T12:34:00.000-05:002009-01-22T12:34:00.000-05:00In the interview, says "What you want to do is mar...In the interview, says "What you want to do is mark the occasion, but write words that will last afterwards and be useful afterwards in some kind of way." I'm still trying to figure out, in what way, these lines are useful, either for the occasion or beyond it. She may claim that the poem isn't about Barack Obama, who needs no gilding, but about us, but I'm struggling to find any connection to the banal images and cliches that she's littered her poems with.<BR/><BR/>Now, to be fair, there are some decent ideas in this piece that could be carried forward:<BR/><BR/>"each one of our ancestors on our tongues" is a fairly resonant idea, especially for a historic inauguration. However, it is too buried in trite descriptions and abstraction to be of any use to anyone.pottygokhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03530399360457624135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-24050452542075819462009-01-22T12:19:00.000-05:002009-01-22T12:19:00.000-05:00It reads better for me with line breaks.http://www...It reads better for me with line breaks.<BR/><BR/>http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/20545Shelley Cherninhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10132631136708521168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-14734332594696956362009-01-22T10:30:00.000-05:002009-01-22T10:30:00.000-05:00Thanks for posting that link, Michael. I saw that ...Thanks for posting that link, Michael. I saw that last night too and I'd say she did a good job explaining the poem. I even went back and read the poem myself and liked it better than I initially did. I think her delivery is was fouled it up.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-77677459969055682012009-01-22T08:46:00.000-05:002009-01-22T08:46:00.000-05:00Ms. Alexander was on the Colbert Report last night...Ms. Alexander was on the Colbert Report last night where she represented poetry in a bit better fashion.<BR/><BR/>She also explains her interpretation of the praise song format a bit.<BR/><BR/>http://bravenewfilms.org/blog/68490-colbert-report-elizabeth-alexandermichael salingerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14717310933948991992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-73438997055044943752009-01-21T19:58:00.000-05:002009-01-21T19:58:00.000-05:00BTW, I e-mailed Elizabeth Alexander (using the e-m...BTW, I e-mailed Elizabeth Alexander (using the e-mail on her website) inviting her to respond to this post and the next one on the blog. Maybe we'll get a response?pottygokhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03530399360457624135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-47811574655561615992009-01-21T19:49:00.000-05:002009-01-21T19:49:00.000-05:00Check this article out. It actually looks at the f...Check this article out. It actually looks at the form she was attempting:<BR/><BR/>http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2009/jan/21/elizabeth-alexander-obama-inauguration-praise-songpottygokhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03530399360457624135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-9176979497997042202009-01-21T18:42:00.000-05:002009-01-21T18:42:00.000-05:00Lizzy Boredom?...Lizzy Boredom?...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-73486219394569330072009-01-21T18:15:00.000-05:002009-01-21T18:15:00.000-05:00yes...so unfortunate. A live audience of 2 millio...yes...so unfortunate. A live audience of 2 million and how many millions watching around the world--and opportunity that probably no other poet will have--and she put people to sleep...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-75873316167675153382009-01-21T17:07:00.000-05:002009-01-21T17:07:00.000-05:00He was definitely making fun of Alexander, no doub...He was definitely making fun of Alexander, no doubt about it. And Maya Angelou earlier in the clip. But twice he says he's not a big fan of poetry, so the the jabs sting that much more. <BR/><BR/>But I think you're right. The Rev. certainly upstaged the poet. Kind of Smith-like, in my opinion. Made Obama laugh!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-48977745635344208532009-01-21T15:18:00.000-05:002009-01-21T15:18:00.000-05:00i watched that clip just now. i do think jon was m...i watched that clip just now. i do think jon was making fun of Elizabeth Alexander, more than mocking poetry at large. he makes a good point..the reverend to follow in a Hughesian manner upstaged the Yale prof. maybe the religion mixed in was the passion lacking in the poem. in a sense, the reverend delivered a 'poem'.Pressin Onhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02875715937095082907noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-85897969989794920432009-01-21T12:10:00.000-05:002009-01-21T12:10:00.000-05:00Scratch that. Correct URL below:http://www.thedail...Scratch that. Correct URL below:<BR/><BR/>http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=216537&title=changefest-09-obamasAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-13115219487938207032009-01-21T12:05:00.000-05:002009-01-21T12:05:00.000-05:00This should concern us all much more. The fact tha...This should concern us all much more. The fact that Jon Stewart pretty much dismisses poetry in this little segment from last night's show.<BR/><BR/>http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=216538&title=changefest-09-obamas-inaugural <BR/><BR/>A fine setback for poetry in the U.S.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-38976198728018499342009-01-21T10:53:00.000-05:002009-01-21T10:53:00.000-05:00I disagree. There is great poetry being written, a...I disagree. There is great poetry being written, and published, both in academic and non-academic journals alike. This just isn't it. <BR/><BR/>I'm sorry, but give me Tim Seibles on Obama. I want a throbbing, vatic voice reading a poem that will shake this country to its knees.pottygokhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03530399360457624135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-78677304143725876112009-01-21T03:00:00.000-05:002009-01-21T03:00:00.000-05:00Pottygok, The problem is not that Alexander's poem...Pottygok, <BR/>The problem is not that Alexander's poem "isn't poetry." The problem is that it IS poetry, as it has come to be practiced in the 20th century--and into the 21st.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-40819330861374204392009-01-20T21:13:00.000-05:002009-01-20T21:13:00.000-05:00I was afraid of posting, thinking I was the only o...I was afraid of posting, thinking I was the only one who felt this way. I'm glad others saw the same things I did. <BR/><BR/>This is not poetry. Too many of the "lines" were vague and abstract, and too many of the images were buried in, as the anonymous commenter correctly wrote, "forgettable" words. <BR/><BR/>I'm not sure what upsets me the most--that people out there think that this is what poetry is, or should be, or that now, thanks to Elizabeth Alexander, people will now expect this sort of mediocrity from poetry, and not read or accept poetry that forces them to delve deeper into themselves. Either way, this was an embarrasing moment for poetry.pottygokhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03530399360457624135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-33010828952323300852009-01-20T19:09:00.000-05:002009-01-20T19:09:00.000-05:00The poem is so lame and cringeworthy on manylevels...The poem is so lame and cringeworthy on many<BR/>levels. I cannot believe this woman is a college<BR/>professor at Yale. It is too bad, she is allowed to <BR/>pass critical judgement on students.gertrude butterworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16932333031270457965noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5641117771707843067.post-54123064823526470972009-01-20T14:04:00.000-05:002009-01-20T14:04:00.000-05:00Just watching as it was delivered, I was less than...Just watching as it was delivered, I was less than impressed.<BR/><BR/>I though she was clearly upstaged by Rev. Joseph E. Lowery, a stalwart<BR/>of the civil rights movement, who delivered the benediction. ..<BR/><BR/>Was it the poem or the delivery?<BR/><BR/>Reading the text on the blog, maybe both. It seemed like a perfectly acceptable poem one would read in POETRY or The New Yorker or any dozen literary magazines - clever, safe, and forgettable.<BR/><BR/>I'm afraid poetry did not win many converts today...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com