zodiac18 Jan 2006

I'm playing with the idea that there are more arenas in poetry than I've previously imagined. There's the hymnal, religious, family-oriented arena (amanda's); the poetic song lyric arena (like wilco's); the publication in Big Name journals arena (mine); the deeply personal arena; the writer's-pleasure-only arena, probably; and who knows how many others (SLAM!, California wackiness, goth, poop.)

Amanda's poems would not be successful in my arena, yes. Neither would mine be suitable for hers. But in our own arenas, we're both aces. To be sure, the very best poetry is the best because it suits more than one crowd or idea of poetry - Frost comes to mind for being personal and big name; Donne for being lyrical, big-name, and devotional. And so on.

Should I insist on judging amanda's work by how well it would fit in, say, Atlantic Quarterly? Or an L.A. SLAM! reading? Doesn't that discount a lot of popular, enduring writing that's well-suited to its place?

Feel free to disagree. I can see why anyone would.