Poetry

[other_life]

Judaism in Spite of Christianity –

Night. Reading: taking to
the Hebrews at its word,
Moses is a house that
Jesus built. Is sanded
and complains – beam-fitted,
gripes – but also beams. Rest:
Moses is an empty
nest, an eagle widow –
a bare room, dressed down and
sunned, white handed – dwarfed by
double windows. Jesus?

A landlord, tribunaled
(and cleared). Jesus works his
contracts, that is to say:
the whitepaper promise;
promissories; sorty
'on conditions'; small-print
emendations; standard
editions – an 'as if'
possession – asterisk
for residence. Moses.

 

[Benny Bunter]

Just finished Chapman's Iliad. Loved the long free-flowing lines that manage to pack in so much without becoming clogged up, every single death (and it's a very high body count) described in vivid, gory detail, none of that pompous neoclassical stuff. Great to read out loud too. Can't imagine it's ever been bettered as a translation. I mean, there's supposedly more 'faithful' ones out there, but who cares about that really? What you want is excitement.

 

[Benny Bunter]

Check out the difference between Chapman's and Pope's versions:

 

[Corpsey]

Saint-Lô​

Vire will wind in other shadows
unborn through the bright ways tremble
and the old mind ghost-forsaken
sink into its havoc.

(Samuel Beckett)

VIRE? 🤔

Any thoughts on "vire"?

Saint Lo was a site of wartime conflagration/destruction so I suppose the poem is about the future people who will forget all the violence one day

Could it even be an optimistic poem? I'd be disappointed in that coming from old misery guts

 

[Benny Bunter]

Any thoughts on "vire"?

An old french word for a type of arrow fired from a crossbow apparently

 

[other_life]

Maternity Lede -

Israel, first of all, was created
before the eyes of God by Moses - self
same Maker of the heavens which are, He
the very mighty - and the fearsome land;
but for ev'rything, it was his land. And
all wondered; but in that hold, a darkness
over Judah (before all his servants.)

Israel: servants; first His, of all. Before all
was Judah created - over, before
a darkness. The eyes' hold of that God - in,
by. But Moses wondered, all self, and same
Maker. Land of his was the Heavens - and
which are He, the very mighty.

Israel, mighty servants, the very
first - he His, He his. All of which
are before, and all the heaven
was Judah; was created his - over,
before. Of a land maker, and darkness
the same. And eyes hold self - all of
wonder; yes - that by Moses, but
in God.

 

[Corpsey]

Mild coincidence I was looking up some helen vendler lectures the other day and turns out she died the other day

Helen Vendler, ‘Colossus’ of Poetry Criticism, Dies at 90

In the poetry marketplace, her praise had reputation-making power, while her disapproval could be withering.

www.nytimes.com

 

[Benny Bunter]

That's sad, I really liked her. Wanted to get one of her books on Wallace Stevens but they're too expensive now. Her book on Shakespeare's sonnets is supposed to be great too.

 

[Corpsey]

That was actually how I happened across this fascinating freak