[New-Poetry] Taking Kooser's measure

[David Bircumshaw]

Dear me, this is getting to the verge of the nonsensical: I like Berryman's
poems, BUT he had a flat ear, I believe that was due to deafness in one
lughole, his writing was also derivative, certainly in the early years, the
ghost of the still then living Auden leaned over his shoulder, academic, his
writing is often as college style as Sylvia Plath's early work etc etc.
A lovely presence in literary history, yes, but a great poet, no, nor was
Richard Hugo, although he wrote some beauties too.

Touchstone definitions of a great poet and a major poet: Dante was the
former, Calvalcanti the latter.

Bored in the Bar

Dave



----- Original Message -----
From: "Anthony Lawrence" <ajlawrence1 at bigpond.com>
To: "NewPoetry: Contemporary Poetry News &amp;Views"
<new-poetry at wiz.cath.vt.edu>
Sent: Sunday, August 27, 2006 12:31 AM
Subject: Re: [New-Poetry] Taking Kooser's measure


> Berryman is definitely there with the greats of American poet, from
> that time or any other.
>
>
> On 27/08/2006, at 6:45 AM, steve moore wrote:
>
> > I'm too close to even the poets from that period to be objective in
> > a list, however, I think John Berryman would certainly rank as major.
> >
> > As far as contemporary poets, I really don't know, with one
> > exception, Li-Young Lee. I think he will be read in college
> > classrooms 200 years from now (if college classrooms still exist).
> >
> >
> > On Aug 26, 2006, at 8:40 AM, Bob Grumman wrote:
> >
> >> I think Kooser and Collins and others at that level who get
> >> praised at New-Poetry are comparable in poetry to Donald Westlake,
> >> whom I recently got a stack of books by from a friend, in prose.
> >> Enjoyable to read.  Admirable as craftsmen in many way.
> >> Intelligent.  Etc.  But not what I'd call major.  Which makes me
> >> wonder: just who of poets now active in America should be
> >> considered a major poet?  James recently described Goldbarth as
> >> one, which floored me.  But why not, if Kooser and Collins and
> >> other poet laureates might be?
> >>
> >> The complaint will be that we're too close in time to the poets
> >> we're judging to judge properly.  So let me shift the problem: who
> >> of the American poets coming to prominence between 1950 and 1975
> >> seem to have been at the level of Frost and Stevens?
> >>
> >> I find it hard to rate any American poet academics know about
> >> major since Roethke.  Maybe Wilbur.  Maybe Frank O'Hara.  Not
> >> Ginsberg.  I don't think much of Ashbery but would have to accept
> >> him as major because so many people whose opinions about poets I
> >> respect would rate him major.
> >>
> >> So, who would be on such a list?  (Note: I'm not trying to start a
> >> debate, just curious what names come up.  So I'll be an observer
> >> on this, not a commentator.)
> >>
> >> --Bob G.
> >> _______________________________________________
> >> New-Poetry mailing list
> >> New-Poetry at wiz.cath.vt.edu
> >> http://wiz.cath.vt.edu/mailman/listinfo/new-poetry
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > New-Poetry mailing list
> > New-Poetry at wiz.cath.vt.edu
> > http://wiz.cath.vt.edu/mailman/listinfo/new-poetry
>
> _______________________________________________
> New-Poetry mailing list
> New-Poetry at wiz.cath.vt.edu
> http://wiz.cath.vt.edu/mailman/listinfo/new-poetry