[David Landrum]

Rochester, yes--especially "Saint James Park" and "A Satire on Charles II." But also Martial, Catallus, Dante, Chaucer.

dwl

[Roger Slater]

Not to mention Benny Hill.

[Cally Conan-Davies]

I think Norman is in part referring to a thread - can't remember which now - where I mentioned, "that said" (I don't think I really said that!) Rochester is my great great great (don't know the exact accumulation of greatness) grandfather. What can I say? It's just...true! I love knowing that he's behind me, or front of me, in some way! I think he's great!

By the way, I want to come back as a bonobo.

Cally

[Richard Meyer]

Originally Posted by Cally Conan-Davies

By the way, I want to come back as a bonobo.

Cally, that's an excellent choice for reincarnation! Many years ago I saw a TV program about the bonobo chimps and their sexual practices. After watching the film, I just had to have a cigarette and glass of wine.

Richard

[Michael Cantor]

Be careful what you wish for, Cally. Bonobos don't weep.

[Ed Shacklee]

A lark for me, either as a bird or a noun.

To get back to Norman's post, I'm still not sure what the term 'sexual deviance' is meant to encompass. I can't recall the last time I saw a poem about incest or pedophilia anywhere, let alone on the Sphere, so I'm assuming the definition is broader, but how broad?

My own take is that sex of whatever stripe, despite its attractions, is a red herring. I may not be sure how deviance is defined in this context, but I have a very clear personal sense of what a 'crappy' poem is, and that's the word that stuck out in the original comment, for me. Definitions vary, but bad writing is one of the few taboos everyone here would agree on; and however we as individuals respond to a bad poem, I don't think that should change very much, whether it has its knickers on or not.

Ed

[Laura Heidy-Halberstein]

Originally Posted by Michael Cantor

Bonobos don't weep.

Of course they don't. Why would they?