Mark Strand...
For me, it's all about images. I read "The Story of Our Lives" in Intro to Creative Writing back in freshman year, and, while I forgot the poet, and even that it was a poem, I remembered the image I had formed of the couple in the room of their lives, flipping through the book of their lives. Now, reading "The Prediction," for instance, I again felt that what I was taking away from the poems, more than anything, was an image. There, the young woman walking, and then, at the end, somehow and no doubt a bit hazily I see the woman in the man in the woman, and the moon, etc. It's so atmospheric, but he does it with so few words!
"The Dreadful..." I'm less sure about. It's shocking, of course, and I like the moment of realizing that it's not going to be a literal poem, but in the end it's just to vague for me. I feel like he's trying to be sensationalist, but without a much greater purpose. Why is there all of this violence? What purpose is it serving, other than to shock us. This is generally my complaint with Strand. I feel it less in the other poems, but even in "The Story" there are moments where I'm not sure whether he isn't just being clever. But this is a small thought, really.
"Where Are the Waters..." was really beautiful. I think he's less typically this lyrical, so it was a pleasurable surprise. I liked taking the journey of the poem, right up until the last line, which so horribly broke with the lyrical beauty. But, I suppose, if it's read in the right voice it could be nice.
Hmmm...so it sounds like I'm most impressed with his imagery, with his power of description, and least with his philosophy. I actually think I LIKE his philosophy in many places, but it's the fact that I'm not sure he's entirely consistent, the fact that I'm not sure he's really scrutinized his poems to be certain of their truth (he seems to write for sound more than meaning?), that troubles me just a little. But only just a little. Mostly, I love how he creates these little worlds, that really do seem like oases, seem so much larger than their few lines.
Alright, well, that was NOT timely. But there will be no more such procrastination! Onward to...whom?
1 comment:
Hey Kate,
Before moving on to Mary Oliver, I just wanted to comment on your thoughts. I am in agreement with you about the lingering imagery that Strand's poetry left in my brain. "The Story of Our Lives" was very vivid for me as well. I also had similar thoughts about being unsure as to what his philosophy ends up being. I remember feeling disconnected and unsure of what he was saying in some places.
This actually reminds me of a conversation I had with my neighbor a few weeks ago. We had just been to a talk by Gus Speth, who is the Dean of the School of Forestry at Yale. He spoke about his new book, "The Bridge at the End of the World". He didn't say too much that I hadn't heard before, but I remember being struck by some of the questions students were asking at the end. Many of them sounded so sophisticated that they made my mind spin a little bit- it took me a few minutes to realize that it wasn't a lack of intelligence on my part that was making it difficult to understand their questions. In fact, many of the questions were simple, but they were being asked in a convoluted way. It's still hard for me to break out of assuming that it is just me when I find things disjointed and confusing. After the talk, my neighbor and I chatted about it, and I was surprised to hear that he was having the same problem. OK, on towards Oliver!
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