[New-Poetry] Camlle Paglia explains how she saved poetry

[jforjames at aol.com]

I think what Paglia reacted to in Pound, and there's some truth to it, is that Pound never wrote a poem that wasn't in some way?
about something else, be it?a pastiche,?provocation or persona. Stein famously called him the 'villager explainer'. But she might have said,
as she did about her hometown, that in Pound's poetry "There's no there there."? And Ol'?Ez might have pointed to his noggin and said, "No, it's all here?here, and that's what matters."?

As for Stevens, she does put two of his poems in her anthology...but seems to dislike the late Stevens. I don't think?this is uncommon. His work changed. You can still see the glimpses...but late Stevens wasn't as interested in the 'essential gaudiness' of poetry. He was more interested in how the mind would, if it could, replace faith/religion with experience.

I think it's unfair to call her a Philistine. A Philistine wouldn't write a mini-essay to accompany 43 poems, as she did in Break, Break, Blow. She obviously is deeply attracted to poetry. She has made?an investment in the art, and risked an opinion on a?large number of poems. That doesn't mean she's right about things...but, my god, give me a reader like that any day, even if she's wrong. Mostly what passes for critical comment is second-hand and received readings passed along with a?nod?or a salute.
Finnegan

-----Original Message-----
From: Bob Grumman <bobgrumman at nut-n-but.net>
Sent: Sat, 15 Nov 2008 7:08 pm
Subject: Re: [New-Poetry] Camlle Paglia explains how she saved poetry


jforjames at aol.com wrote: 
I didn't have a chance to read the whole piece till yesterday, and it looks like I'm of the minority viewpoint, but I think that Paglia did a good job defending the poems she picked for her anthology. Opinion is all critics have in the end...there is no proof as I said today after reading the piece: http://ursprache.blogspot.com/
She laid out her opinions on poetry quite nicely, I thought.?(And?she's obviously not intimidated?or held hostage to careerist niceties so much that she's dissuaded from expressing?displeasure at 'name poets'. Which I find refreshing.)?
The other thing I think this?piece points to is how much the?'anthology pieces' we know come to us as?received icons.
The poems are not questioned. Not interrogated. They were taught to as 'canonical' or?a certain?poetry interest group
?has 'vested' them and they go on, living-dead zombie poems pushed forward through time without question,
Finnegan

Including those of your friend (and mine) Wally.?? I doubt I'll ever have time, but I wouldn't mind doing a reply to Paglia's text.? I think she's a Total Philistine.? Good grief, anyone who could blithely write off ALL the poems of Pound, for instance, has to be subliterate.? But, true, I only skimmed her text after the first ten or fifteen paragraphs.? And, of course, I'm not bright enough to have risen above the poetry I've been indoctrinated to take as canonical.

--Bob G.? 



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