<\/p>\n
A great piece by my friend katydid, a poet and not a slam poet.<\/p>\n
[Please make sure you read all the way to
\nthe end, because it has important qualifications to
\nthe cynicism.]<\/p>\n
Things I Learned at The Poetry Slam National Finals,
\nSt. Louis, August 7 2004<\/p>\n
1.\u00a0 Usually, things were better when you were a kid.
\n(The standard exceptions include poverty, rape,
\nincest, abuse, discrimination, or cancer \u2013 other than
\nthat things really were better, because you got to
\nhave recess, freedom from the demands of conformity,
\nthe demands of productivity, and you got relative
\nsafety from harm without having to ask for it or work
\nfor it, or even think about it.)<\/p>\n
2.\u00a0 Iambic meter is most effective when you \u201cslam\u201d
\nevery stressed syllable.
\nAs in… \u201cto BE or NOT to BE\u201d, &c.
\n(Is that why they call them \u201cslams\u201d?)<\/p>\n
3.\u00a0 There\u2019s a lot of stuff to be poetically pissed off
\nabout.\u00a0 In the human condition, there\u2019s really nothing
\nlike joy worth mentioning, unless it involves sex with
\npeople you trust.<\/p>\n
4.\u00a0 Poetry that expresses pride is good, but only if
\nthat pride arises from either
\na) surviving horrible things
\nb) being more aware than non-poets that other people
\nsuffer<\/p>\n
5.\u00a0 In general, people are shallow.<\/p>\n
6.\u00a0 Middle-class people are especially shallow, and
\nespecially the ones in suburbia, because they are
\ninsulated by their own choice from the suffering of
\nothers.<\/p>\n
7.\u00a0 Stuff you buy in malls or box stores is bad,
\nunless it\u2019s the DVD player you got so that you can
\nplay last year\u2019s and this year\u2019s Slam Championship
\nDVDs, (on sale over by the door).<\/p>\n
8.\u00a0 People like it when you shout.\u00a0 This seems to be
\nbecause it most effectively demonstrates deep feeling
\nand also awakens deep feeling in other people.<\/p>\n
9.\u00a0 In addition to the atrocities mentioned above,
\nstereotypical instances of human brutality include
\nleaving babies in trash bags, war, and lynching.\u00a0 If
\nthese things are never brought to light in the company
\nof like-minded people, no one would ever notice nor
\ncare, much less try to stop them from happening again.<\/p>\n
10.\u00a0 Stereotyping is bad, unless stereotypes are
\npoetically useful.<\/p>\n
(That\u2019s about it.\u00a0 I actually was extremely moved by
\nmany poems, and still feel their power today, as
\nnothing short of breathtaking.\u00a0 But poetry doesn\u2019t
\nhave to be bitter, self-righteous, or loud to be
\nmoving.\u00a0 It just has to make me see the world in a way
\nthat I have never seen it before, and make me desire
\nwhat is good, and shun what is bad \u2013 or just make me
\nmarvel at the things \u2013 at the wonders \u2013 that human
\nbeings can create, even staying within a three-minute
\ntime limit.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A great piece by my friend katydid, a poet and not a slam poet. [Please make sure you read all the way to the end, because it has important qualifications to the cynicism.] Things I Learned at The Poetry … Continue reading