Does the prospect of reading a poem send you into panicked memories of 11th grade English class? FEAR NOT! Poetry doesn't have to be like that! In this episode we find out how it's secretly all around us in the best ways, use theory to kill the author and open up avenues for fun interpretation, and share love for viral poetry by women of color. Maria's pal and colleague Dr. Adhaar Noor Desai helps demo how to unpack a plum(b) poem (the results make Noorain blush!), and we discover how to put more poetry in our lives. Take a moment to listen - and maybe even start to write!
Links to Stuff We Talk About
Theory
Roland Barthes, “The Death of the Author” (1967) http://www.tbook.constantvzw.org/wp-content/death_authorbarthes.pdf
Context
Román Castellanos-Monfil, "Yale senior wins the Individual World Poetry Slam Championship," Yale News, October 26, 2015. http://news.yale.edu/2015/10/26/yale-senior-wins-individual-world-poetry-slam-championship. (video of Emi’s performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IspMMNR8EOo)
Ron Charles, Geoff Edgers and Brian Murphy, "‘Poetry for the ear’: Bob Dylan wins Nobel Prize in Literature," The Washington Post. October 13, 2016. https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/bob-dylan-wins-nobel-prize-in-literature/2016/10/13/d0c05ac4-90ea-11e6-a6a3-d50061aa9fae_story.html
J.G. McClure, “The Miseducation of the Poet: High School and the Fear of Poetry,” Clever Magazine. http://www.cleavermagazine.com/the-miseducation-of-the-poet-high-school-and-the-fear-of-poetry-by-j-g-mcclure/
National Endowment for the Arts, “How a Nation Engages with Art: Highlights from the 2012 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts,” NEA Research Report #57, September 2013. https://www.arts.gov/sites/default/files/highlights-from-2012-sppa-revised-oct-2015.pdf
Michelle Toglia, “Transcript Of Beyonce's 'Lemonade' Because The Words Are Just As Important As The Music,” Bustle, April 24, 2016. https://www.bustle.com/articles/156559-transcript-of-beyonces-lemonade-because-the-words-are-just-as-important-as-the-music YouTube video with all Lemonade poems: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbV84ztUyuY (catch the lemonade recipe we play at 16:30 -17:48)
Bonus
A bonus close reading of Billy Collins's poem "Divorce" with Adhaar and Maria from their interview! Cutlery involved.
Poetry in Motion by MTA Arts & Design: http://web.mta.info/mta/aft/poetry/
More on writer & artist Rupi Kaur: https://www.rupikaur.com/ (on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/rupikaur_/?hl=en) https://www.rupikaur.com/milkandhoney/)
Suggested poems for people who think they don’t like poetry: https://www.bustle.com/articles/193723-8-poetry-collections-for-people-who-dont-like-poetry
Try writing your own poem! Here are some great English-language haikus: https://www.amazon.com/Haiku-Anthology-Third-Cor-Heuvel/dp/0393321185 Or write a poem based on a memory following these steps by Tara Skurtu: http://blog.bestamericanpoetry.com/the_best_american_poetry/2016/01/i-dont-like-poetry-im-not-a-poetry-person-by-tara-skurtu.html
Guest speaker BIO! Adhaar Noor Desai is an Assistant Professor of Literature at Bard College who specializes in Shakespeare and early modern poetry. He completed his PhD in English at Cornell University, where he was a Fellow at their Center for Teaching Excellence. He has recently published in the journal Configurations and writes theatre reviews on contemporary stagings of Shakespeare. Follow him on Twitter at @adhaardesai
Poems
Helen Chasin, “The Word Plum”
Patrick Philips, "Heaven"
John Stephenson, "Snowy night" and other haiku
William Carlos Williams, “Asphodel, That Greeny Flower”
Music this time by Corinne Bailey Rae, Bob Dylan, & Johnny Tillotson.