In Janet's original post she wrote: every poem comes with an aura of otherness which we ought to respect. I think that's her real point here. Yes, Janet? Too often we see a crit trying to re-write the poem in the critter's own image, or in the collective image of the board itself (which is even more egregiously tyrannical and detrimental to poetry as a whole). As far as I am concerned, the first and foremost responsibility of a critter (and a reader) is to try to get inside the head of the "other" poet, not to cut that head off and replace it with one's own. That crucial moment of empathy is, I think, what Janet is addressing. Yes, Janet? Without it, the rest (other than the sort of technical discussions that are possible on the metrical forums) can too easily degenerate into mere showboating and jerking off.
Nemo
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