Poets have a unique job to highlight the beauty of the mundane, the grotesque, and the world in general. However, many view poets as the keepers of emotion and profound insight, which may or may not be true. As part of my new poetic strategy to keep up on contemporary poetry, I have subscribed to several literary journals. In the Summer 2007 issue of Poet Lore, published by the Writer's Center in Bethesda, Md, "Spoons, An Appreciation" by Tim Barnes caught my eye.
In the lines, "but to spoon is to make love, cuddle together" and "but spoons are the shapes of breasts and buttocks" Barnes forces the reader to check the utensil drawer, pick up a spoon, and view it with a different perspective. To make the sensuality of a spoon more clear, he sharply contrasts spoons with knives and forks. He illustrates how knives and forks, poke, jab, and sever meat and vegetables, while spoons covet, cup, and hold food gently in an embrace, like a lover.
The light-hearted poem reminds me how powerful words can be, especially in changing readers' minds about various subjects, whether it be a spoon or war. I think too often these days, readers and writers are reliant upon cliche and fail to view the world afresh.
Jun 12, 2007
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3 comments:
I love that poem.
Wow. In light of reading your review, I realize everything I've written lately about the books I've read sucks.
Keep up the good work. (Review writing I mean, not making my work look dull.) LOL
And don't forget to pass that issue along to me when you're done. ;)
LOL your reviews are very good. The spoon poem was just something that got me to thinking about what poets do and how they are perceived. That all. nothing big deal.
I will pass the issue along...but some of the work is dense and has me thinking...it could be a while. I may do a couple other poem reviews from that issue and some from the Poetry magazine.
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