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That's the question I hear nagging in the background when I read much stuff here. It's the voice of the least polite part of me, urging me to ask the question directly, of that writer who has presented a . . . 'poem.'
I do not doubt that the posting writer believes it to be a poem. While it is true that I will sometimes post a rotting bit of fish, out of sheer perversity, I do not think my quirk is a common one; thus, I suppose that a posting writer here is being 'authentic,' is presenting what s/he believes to be a poem. So, it becomes a puzzle for me when I read a piece that is no more poetic than a shopping list.
The evergreen question: "What is a poem?" shows up in blogs and forums, and goes begging. Perhaps rightly: the question is over-reaching, or it is naive. A horse can tell that the answers to that question are at least so many in number as the number of people to answer it.
But the question direct, which I use here as the title to this plog bost, seems to me to have merit: if it were answered by a writer whose posting I had read, I would have at least a reduction of the mystery. I'd know SOMETHING.
I do not doubt that the posting writer believes it to be a poem. While it is true that I will sometimes post a rotting bit of fish, out of sheer perversity, I do not think my quirk is a common one; thus, I suppose that a posting writer here is being 'authentic,' is presenting what s/he believes to be a poem. So, it becomes a puzzle for me when I read a piece that is no more poetic than a shopping list.
The evergreen question: "What is a poem?" shows up in blogs and forums, and goes begging. Perhaps rightly: the question is over-reaching, or it is naive. A horse can tell that the answers to that question are at least so many in number as the number of people to answer it.
But the question direct, which I use here as the title to this plog bost, seems to me to have merit: if it were answered by a writer whose posting I had read, I would have at least a reduction of the mystery. I'd know SOMETHING.