[New-Poetry] English Meter WAS: Some stuff about Alan Sondheim

[David Bircumshaw]

I agree with about the combination of fatuous complacency with partial truth
in Frost's remark, Rob, but at the moment I'm not in a good mood for talking
about our alleged culture: V has just told me about another of her
delightful experiences of being raped, this particular occasion was about
five years ago and she was struggling across the road with her walking frame
(she'd had a drink) and one of our our Asian friends helped her across and
into the back room of his restaurant. Etc etc. Until now she's been too
frightened to say anything. It strikes me that the discrepancy between what
we claim to be our culture and what really happens is so wide that the gap
cannot be crossed.

I'm coming to think that poetry, and the arts in general, are rather like
that dinner party in the closing scenes of Carry On Up The Khyber: a farcial
denial of reality.

They should have invited Koosner to it for a prize-giving, or the late John
Betjeman, whom our media here are so lauding of late (it being the centenary
of his birth). Perhaps Iowa State or Buffalo could develop an MFA in Being
In Hell.

Best

Dave
----- Original Message -----
From: "Robin" <robin.hamilton2 at btinternet.com>
To: "NewPoetry: Contemporary Poetry News &amp;Views"
<new-poetry at wiz.cath.vt.edu>
Sent: Thursday, September 07, 2006 12:22 PM
Subject: Re: [New-Poetry] English Meter WAS: Some stuff about Alan Sondheim


> From: "David Bircumshaw" <david.bircumshaw at ntlworld.com>
>
> >> whether the
> >> surrounding syllables are more or less stressed.
> >
> > Now, now, Mr Hamilton. You shoot yourself in your own metrical foot with
> > the
> > phrase 'more or less'.
>
> It's not a phrase, lackbrain, it's two separate words.  Perhaps I should
> have pointed it thusly:  "syllables are more - or less - stressed".  I
> assumed the context would disambiguate for all but the weakest of
> intellects.
>
> > Then we can all subvert Robert Frost and happily play tennis without a
net
> > (excuse this promiscous miscegenation of metaphors)
>
> It's called shinty, or gollywog, not real tennis, nah?  I mean squash.
>
> Do I?
>
> (What has always driven me into a teeth-grinding spasm of fury every time
I
> hear or think of the Frost remark is its combination of fatuous
complacency
> with partial truth.)
>
> R.
>
>
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