RE: What are your thoughts?

jodyrust

December 07, 2007 by jodyrust in response to What are your thoughts?

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Hello Tasha,

One observation I have made of young poets, and the many poets involved in slam poetry, is a dislike or even disdain for the academia and their often staunch and subjective judgement of what makes quality poetry.

Slam poetry is often about breaking boundaries and changing traditional poetry into new clothing. The academia traditionally wants to define everything by identifying unique characteristics and establishing quality control standards.

The more I read and the more I study poetry, the pickier I get about what I think is good or not good writing. When I first attended poetry readings and was introduced to slam poetry, I found it exciting. The more energy exhibited, the better. Now, after classes and a more careful study of the genre of poetry, my ear is more sensitive. It's kind of like the difference between someone who can hear that a singer is slightly off key and someone who can't hear it. Before, I couldn't hear it, and now I can -- however subjective that hearing may be. I think that is both sad and good, and I blame the careful study of poetry and its various characteristics, forms and movements for the change in my hearing.

That said, the institutionalization of slam poetry will lock it into a category with standards and characteristics that are in part established by the nature of the movement, and in part established by what the academia considers good or bad poetry. I have two minds on that -- I think it is good and bad: good for the recognition and shift in what might traditionally be considered good poetry; bad for the people who don't want the rules and regulations to determine what is quality poetry and what is not.

The other thought I have on the matter is that slam poetry is much like beat poetry, but we don't hear many people today calling themselves beat poets. I think maybe slam poetry consists of a broader defintion than beat poetry, but without studying what people have said is unique about the beat poets, I really don't see how they are any different than other poets of their time or after. Not many people call themselves beat poets unless they were a part of that clique. Will slam poetry be stuck in time with a certain generation, or will it become something that is timeless. Given its performance characteristic, it could become institutionalized and then become timeless. . . . Or, it could just be a part of the history of poetry in America and an influence on some later movement of poetry.

I don't think any of the possiblities are bad, but I am not sure that they are all great either. Does that help clarify my comment?

Jody

Category: Talk

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