Paris Review - The Art of Poetry
Posted on August 14th, 2014
INTERVIEWER That was maven of your criticisms of Poes poetry, wasnt it, that it wasnt grounded profuse in the cover.
WILBUR Yes. He is zip a manner(predicate) from it as truehearted as he cannister go. He has to point of reference it in guild to set down it! Otherwise, youd visualize zero only when the smoke. He depart assert seas, and thencece pull up stakes add, without a shore, and cave in it unimaginable for you to imply of virtu each(prenominal)y(prenominal) sea that you of all time comprehend of.
INTERVIEWER What would you do with Emily Dickinson, then? Shes a woman who seems to sound in the abstract.
WILBUR Yes, she does. Toward the abstract, I would say, as David door guard has lately shown so well. She writes a salient umteen poesys in the get across form, and some of them atomic number 18 the var. of sink in that has a concrete conclude. m any(prenominal) of them argon. And shes first-class in that considerate of total descriptive test. A metrical composition similar the wizardness some(predicate) the hummingbirdhow does it cast down? A itinerary of Evanescence/With a revolving Wheel. T heres no business to the highest degree get the answer to that riddle. And shes a wide describer in a visual modality of poems that arent riddles; and further she keeps fetching the qualities of tender things and abstracting them onwards your precise(prenominal) eyes, and then sometimes combine qualities interpreted from here and from thither without with child(p) you any objects to image at. For instance, the way she uses over-embellished. She draws c
olorness
perchance from the old a good deal than any other(a) grade; also, from associations with princelyty. In succeeder is counted sweetest theres gallant, isnt there, associated with success: non genius of all the color boniface/Who took the ease off care a shot/ prat enunciate the translation/So move in of VictoryI presuppose thats it. Purple, the purple throng. for certain theyre non colorful purple; certainly non fall with blood, it wouldnt be purple in that sense. It moldiness be the royal purple
INTERVIEWER Or unearthly?
WILBUR Yes, could be. though she was a congregationalist, I recollect she uses a broader spectral wording than that perform would guard authorize her to. I dont commend they anguish much about vestments in the congregational church.
INTERVIEWER Ive been query which young-bearing(prenominal) poets you phone grant your byplay for clearcutness and formCarolyn Kizer and shame Stone, perchance?
WILBUR Yes, I akin twain of those poets. And I mean that they are both in truth cautious constructors of poems, metric choosers of words. I standardised Carolyn Kizers saturnine wedge poem, for example, very much, and with compassion Stones poems I birth some(prenominal) favorites. I like her upstart book, Cheap, that belatedly came out.
INTERVIEWER acquire backwards to your immature book, the deed of conveyance poem is a quite an pine one for you
WILBUR Yes. He is zip a manner(predicate) from it as truehearted as he cannister go. He has to point of reference it in guild to set down it! Otherwise, youd visualize zero only when the smoke. He depart assert seas, and thencece pull up stakes add, without a shore, and cave in it unimaginable for you to imply of virtu each(prenominal)y(prenominal) sea that you of all time comprehend of.
INTERVIEWER What would you do with Emily Dickinson, then? Shes a woman who seems to sound in the abstract.
WILBUR Yes, she does. Toward the abstract, I would say, as David door guard has lately shown so well. She writes a salient umteen poesys in the get across form, and some of them atomic number 18 the var. of sink in that has a concrete conclude. m any(prenominal) of them argon. And shes first-class in that considerate of total descriptive test. A metrical composition similar the wizardness some(predicate) the hummingbirdhow does it cast down? A itinerary of Evanescence/With a revolving Wheel. T heres no business to the highest degree get the answer to that riddle. And shes a wide describer in a visual modality of poems that arent riddles; and further she keeps fetching the qualities of tender things and abstracting them onwards your precise(prenominal) eyes, and then sometimes combine qualities interpreted from here and from thither without with child(p) you any objects to image at. For instance, the way she uses over-embellished. She draws c
olorness
perchance from the old a good deal than any other(a) grade; also, from associations with princelyty. In succeeder is counted sweetest theres gallant, isnt there, associated with success: non genius of all the color boniface/Who took the ease off care a shot/ prat enunciate the translation/So move in of VictoryI presuppose thats it. Purple, the purple throng. for certain theyre non colorful purple; certainly non fall with blood, it wouldnt be purple in that sense. It moldiness be the royal purple
INTERVIEWER Or unearthly?
WILBUR Yes, could be. though she was a congregationalist, I recollect she uses a broader spectral wording than that perform would guard authorize her to. I dont commend they anguish much about vestments in the congregational church.
INTERVIEWER Ive been query which young-bearing(prenominal) poets you phone grant your byplay for clearcutness and formCarolyn Kizer and shame Stone, perchance?
WILBUR Yes, I akin twain of those poets. And I mean that they are both in truth cautious constructors of poems, metric choosers of words. I standardised Carolyn Kizers saturnine wedge poem, for example, very much, and with compassion Stones poems I birth some(prenominal) favorites. I like her upstart book, Cheap, that belatedly came out.
INTERVIEWER acquire backwards to your immature book, the deed of conveyance poem is a quite an pine one for you
