Theres a poem in IDK DO YOU that has a line I cant stand. Its called ONE WAY TO BE A PERSON IS TO PARTICIPATE IN THE LOCAL COMMUNITY and the line is Its 8 inches. One of the few metrics Spicer offers when determining whether a poem is exogenous or endogenously lit is calculating if the poem works for or against you. Bad poetry is meant to be traded for social or romantic capital while good poetry can often feel like youre signing a contract on a debt you know you wont be able to repay. I take it seriously when there is something that appears in a poem that makes me look foolish, disreputable, or generally idiotic. Its 8 inches came into my head with the final sentences in a way I couldnt extricate. Whenever I took it out the lines felt like they were missing something. Even matching the syllables removed didnt quite make the ending feel whole as much as that one bro-y line did. There are times I want to read the poem but I dont because I feel embarrassed of that line. Not its inclusion in the poem, which I think complicates the authority in an interesting way, but the way it paints me (my names Roberto by the way hey) as a kind of machismo-inflected dingbat. But, the poem I think works better with it even as I may personally feel embarrassed. Im glad its there and Im glad it still frightens me. Does anyone else have a line, moment, or poem that they kept even if they felt it would be damaging to themselves in some way? Was it worth it?
Posted on: Sat, 10 Jan 2015 17:02:20 +0000
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