tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7760986403290352152.post488171002884417028..comments2024-01-23T03:58:02.422-08:00Comments on oriana-poetry: ROMANESQUE ARCHES: IN PRAISE OF THE HUMANUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7760986403290352152.post-64565159952018169042011-10-15T11:23:17.912-07:002011-10-15T11:23:17.912-07:00I love Bukowski too. One feels a deep honesty in h...I love Bukowski too. One feels a deep honesty in him, a “nothing to lose” attitude. And perhaps that’s when we are finally wise enough to write: when we really know that we are going to die anyway, so we might as well tell the truth rather than continue with positive thinking and other lies. <br /><br />So, in the spirit of truth-seeking: “we are all royalty – we are the children of the King” for me transforms into “we are all royalty – we are human, the children of the Universe.” We have one another, and no need for a “king” – an outdated concept. That makes the self-organizing Universe only all the more awe-inspiring. Let’s admit that it’s magnificent to be human, to participate in the collective human psyche – whether we look at the achievements of modern science or medieval cathedrals. <br /><br />I love the concept of the Great Work. Such work is necessarily collective. Even work that seems the outcome of individuality and loneliness, such as a body of poetry, is ultimately collective in that it draws on the collective psyche, on the work of poets, writers, and philosophers both living and long dead. On a remark that a neighbor made in passing. On what grandmother used to say. It’s the solitaire/solidaire phenomenon. We are more interconnected than we dare think.orianahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04209366167129773052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7760986403290352152.post-29613815554352214412011-10-14T20:01:26.849-07:002011-10-14T20:01:26.849-07:00Beautiful synthesis as always Oriana. "we ar...Beautiful synthesis as always Oriana. "we are all royalty – the children of the King" accords such a truth to each of us -- the right to fully be. Something in this touches a very deep place in me as both human being and a poet.<br /><br />I've thought about the relationship between American and European poetry. The point you make about the philosophical is thought provoking. We like to think of good poetry as having -- among other attributes -- a timeless quality. If American poets are in too much of a hurry for a fast poetic fix perhaps the European poets have the patience and endurance to speak to the ages. The redeemable qualities that endure, that we hope will endure when we return to their writing in ten years or twenty. Poetry like any art serves so many purposes. Do we want to be entertained, amused, educated, inspired? The Sufis, as well as a number of the Asian poets offer even more philosophy per square mile than do the Europeans though some might find the abrasive, confrontational, self-indulgent poetry of Bukowski to be philosphical if that's your brew at the moment (and I do love Bukowski). Anyway, your wonderful post, as always has me examining my ideas about what I really want from words and why despite the many contemporary poets I enjoy, it's always the few that continue to "bring home the bacon" for lack of a bettery poetic vernacular of the moment :) LoisAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com