Thursday, August 07, 2014

An Abstract Poem

Dame Edith Sitwell introduced a poetic movement when she published her book Facade. She wrote in 1949, "The poems in Facade are abstract poems-that is - they are patterns of sound. They are...virtuoso exercises in technique of extreme difficulty, in the same sense as that which certain studies by Liszt are studies in transcendental technique in music."

According to one site, Abstract poetry communicates through " sound and bizarre images." Despite wild experiments Sitwell's poems have an inherent sense. Whether she knew where the ending was when she played with words or the words led Dame Sitwell to a meaningful ending we don't know.

An orchestral arrangement by William Walton accompanied the recitation of Facade. I listened to a recording of Facade and found it, like Rap poetry, finger snapping and foot tapping.

My turn.


Turkey Shoot

A wild turkey sat in a tree
croaking, branches creaked
under her weight
She spread her wings
singing lullabies to five naked babes
Craw, cluck, cluck, cluck
Cackles cracked the air
Sizzling scorched twigs sparked
Her babes hopped
jigging and jogging


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