[ewrgall]

Originally posted by Curtis Gale Weeks:

To a Certain Civilian, Walt Whitman


Did you ask dulcet rhymes from me?
Did you seek the civilian's peaceful and languishing rhymes?
Did you find what I sang erewhile so hard to follow?
Why I was not singing erewhile for you to follow, to understand--nor am I now;
(I have been born of the same as the war was born,
The drum-corps' rattle is ever to me sweet music, I love well the martial dirge,
With slow wail and convulsive throb leading the officer's funeral; )
What to such as you anyhow such a poet as I? therefore leave my works,
And go lull yourself with what you can understand, and with piano-tunes,
For I lull nobody, and you will never understand me.

I dedicate the citation of this poem to Len, suspecting its warm reception.

The things I detest about New Formalism are summarized very well by the above poem by Walt Whitman. New Formalism is at its worst when it attempts to codify thought processes for a community. I equate this tendency to religious fundamentalism, racial fundamentalism, and every other form of fundamentalism.--C.

What Curtis had to say was much longer than this but I only have a short point to make. I dont think Curtis quite reads what Whitman is saying above. One of our founding fathers said (forgive me, I can't remember who) "Patriotism is the last refuguee of a scoundral." All that Whitman does above is "wrap himself and his poetry in the flag." True patriots will love his work! Whitman practically calls his "critic" an effeminate coward. (This written either doing or just after by far the bloodiest war in American history.) I dont think Curtis realizes it but Whatman's poem actually examples exactly the type of thing he accuses New Formalism of doing.

ewrgall





[This message has been edited by ewrgall (edited January 25, 2002).]