Maryann Corbett's
cento inspired by Kenneth Goldsmith's contention that "plagiarism is the new originality" was a perfect match of subject and form. I also liked the way she alternated consonance and perfect rhyme.
For me, the trouble with centos (including Maryann's) is that I tend to recognize the source of fewer than half of the lines. Consequently, I can't shake an unpleasant feeling that's sort of a cross between mild annoyance at being left out of the joke and anxiety that I'm underprepared for a pop quiz.
Where recycled materials are concerned, I prefer poems that meditate upon a single line from another author (often in a repeating form like a ballade, villanelle, ovillejo, or sonnenizio). That way, the reader's unfamiliarity with the borrowed line isn't such a (real or perceived) disadvantage.
But I still like to have the sources identified in some way that doesn't involve my Googling anything. I don't understand why all you folks who find notes patronizing can't just skip them--they're not for you, they're for lazy ignoramuses like me. But I digress.
Susan McLean's "Women's Wear Daily" in
her latest book--a poem previously workshopped at Eratosphere--is a wonderful sonnenizio on a line by Ann Drysdale.
Threaded Mode
