[New-Poetry] Re: frost

[David Graham]

Somewhere long ago in an interview James Wright was asked about his
admiration for some not-very-fashionable old writer.  Can't remember if it
was Herrick, but maybe it was.  Anyway, his reply to why he liked Whomever
was "Just lucky, I guess."

That's sort of how I feel about my love of Frost's work.

I hated it throughout high school and college, too, as a matter of fact.
What turned things around for me were two experiences.  First, I read
Jarrell's essays and Richard Poirier's book in grad school, and realized
that Frost was in many ways a radically challenging poet intellectually.

The second thing was that I had the good fortune to hear a couple poets who
not only loved Frost but who read him aloud marvellously:  Donald Hall and
my old teacher Joe Langland.  I could finally *hear* the music.

I re-recommend Jarrell's essays on Frost.  If anyone reads them and still
finds Frost dull, complacent, sentimental, or whatever, well, that's
probably that.  You've given it your best shot.

Either that, or go visit Joe Langland and hear him do "Directive" from
memory. . . 


On 2/5/07 11:54 AM, "Alexander Dickow" <alexdickow9 at yahoo.com> wrote:

> David,
> I'm afraid Jason and Bob will find an ally here: I've
> always hated Frost, almost as much as I hate Carl
> Sandburg -- even if I think Jason could have been a
> tad more, uh, diplomatic and respectful towards you in
> his language. However, I'd say the problem is not that
> Frost isn't musical, but that he's much too musical,
> in that placid, cud-chewing way that I found so
> distasteful when I was, say, in highschool.
> Sorry to join the fray, and with my due respects to
> you, since we elsewhere share many tastes, as far as I
> can tell.
> Amicalement,
> Alex
> 

====================================================
David Graham
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