Magic Lantern
Monday, January 11, 2016
Andrew Moul 01/11
After my initial listen, I was not impressed by Eileen Myles’
poem “I Don’t Know”. At first, it seemed like a terse, fast paced jumble of nonsense;
however, upon further consideration, it became my favorite piece. In the beginning,
I was frustrated due to the ambiguity that the poem seemed to possess. Her
thoughts sounded like they were strung too close together and even incomplete
in some cases. After listening to the poem a few more times, I began to “fill
in the blanks”. Maybe she was referring to a past relationship, or perhaps this
was her half of a conversation. Although no matter what she was referring to,
her use of a common place sighting and lack of detail allowed me to form my own
conclusions about what she was trying to convey. Leaving the poem’s message or
intention up to the readers’ interpretation is a strategy that I would like to
attempt to use in my own story. Often times, the purpose and message of a piece
of writing is obvious and without question; however, in this case things are
not so clear. By leaving out details, what the reader takes away can be more
personal to him or her. I would also like to incorporate her brevity into my
story. In such a short poem, she conveys so much more than the thirty or so
words she used to write it. In this case, less is more and I think it would be
an interesting challenge to incorporate this style into my writing. I’m not
entirely sure what I want to write about, although I’m considering something
music based. I’ve always loved playing the piano, so I may write about that.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I didn't like the "I Don't Know" piece by Myles because of the scatter-brained effect it has. I know its structure and delivery are purposeful, and after listening to it a few times I can see how the different utterances connect. You could tell a story about how you got into playing piano, a certain experience (recital or playing a specific song), or how it is part of your life. I think explaining the movements or sounds of playing piano could allow for the quick, rapid movements in Myles' story, going from one description or occurrence to the next. I have imagery of movement of one note to the next, or contrasting the thought process in your head as you play with a listener's thought process while someone plays music.
ReplyDeleteI like your idea of writing about playing the piano. That's likely something you wouldn't get bored with. I also think it's great that you're drawing inspiration from "I Don't Know," because it was a piece that almost immediately inspired me, and only after we discussed everything in class did I switch my focus to another one of her poems. I think the strategy of leaving a piece's interpretation up to the reader can be extremely effective. Not to mention the way "I Don't Know" can make you feel like you're being let in on what was a fairly private conversation. You might want to consider that kind of method of inviting the reader in. I think your point about brevity is a good one too, and I could see you doing something really beautiful (and brief) with your idea.
ReplyDeleteI think it would be perfect to use your experience playing the piano and with music in general for this kind of poem. Music is such a hard concept to express in words as it is, so this style of poem gives you room to express yourself in a way that feels comfortable while also leaving it up to interpretation. We talked in class, so I don't have a whole lot to add since you pretty much said it all. I'm excited to hear what you come up with!
ReplyDeleteI think it would be perfect to use your experience playing the piano and with music in general for this kind of poem. Music is such a hard concept to express in words as it is, so this style of poem gives you room to express yourself in a way that feels comfortable while also leaving it up to interpretation. We talked in class, so I don't have a whole lot to add since you pretty much said it all. I'm excited to hear what you come up with!
ReplyDelete