hot diggity! a blog entry!
The following was written for a friend who wanted to post an article on Wikipedia about the poem commisioned for and delivered on the occasion of Barack Obama's inauguration. At the end, I kind of fall-apart in my "objective analysis" of the poem, which can be found here: http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/20545 Rejoice..............
Ms. Alexander's poem "Praise Song for the Day" was written for the occasion of the inauguration of Barack Obama as 44th president of the United States.
The poem consists of three-line stanzas - except for the last line, which is a single line. None of these stanzas are rhymed, running somewhat contrary to the popular thought of a song or the traditional lineage of song in poetry. This is perhaps in keeping with the idea of the poem's final line, of "walking forward"; that is, the song should not be restricted to a traditional form nor a popular conception.
To this end, Ms. Alexander relies more on imagery and rhythm in her poem. The repetition of "someone" as well as the parallel construction "A woman...A farmer....A teacher" both exemplify this reliance. These images reflect the overall image that is attempted, that of an American Everyman, in the tradition of Emerson and the Transcendentalists. Accordingly, or vice-versa, the rhythms are not overly musical, nor are they entirely mute, but, in trying to address the whole spectrum of America and of Americana, Ms. Alexander never assumes for long any definite pitch. The diction of the poem consistently registers away from what readers might consider to be "poetic". It stays readily accesable throughout, which is surely desireable for a poem that the author knows will receive international attention.
Her subjects in this poem other than the Everyman are: love, hope, sacrifice and the quotidien. In attempting to address as many people as possible, Ms. Alexander has perhaps succeeded. But in the attempt has failed to write a poem of any consequence because she has underestimated her audience vastly. She has reckoned the reading level of the general public roughly correct, but she has not correctly assessed their ability to want to understand, their craving for the novel and the beautiful; that the public might want music put to their Everyman lives seems out of the question. There is nothing so laudatory here. Rather, Ms. Alexander does America a great disservice by choosing the path most traveled. She has not, in the words of Roosevelt, "dared greatly". She has erred greatly in that her piece, I will not call it a poem, presents America to the world as a bunch of friendly halfwits waiting for the short bus that will take them to "something better down the road". A blindly hoping, emptily loving, mindlessly sacrificing lot.
Here's to you, token black female poet!
Ms. Alexander's poem "Praise Song for the Day" was written for the occasion of the inauguration of Barack Obama as 44th president of the United States.
The poem consists of three-line stanzas - except for the last line, which is a single line. None of these stanzas are rhymed, running somewhat contrary to the popular thought of a song or the traditional lineage of song in poetry. This is perhaps in keeping with the idea of the poem's final line, of "walking forward"; that is, the song should not be restricted to a traditional form nor a popular conception.
To this end, Ms. Alexander relies more on imagery and rhythm in her poem. The repetition of "someone" as well as the parallel construction "A woman...A farmer....A teacher" both exemplify this reliance. These images reflect the overall image that is attempted, that of an American Everyman, in the tradition of Emerson and the Transcendentalists. Accordingly, or vice-versa, the rhythms are not overly musical, nor are they entirely mute, but, in trying to address the whole spectrum of America and of Americana, Ms. Alexander never assumes for long any definite pitch. The diction of the poem consistently registers away from what readers might consider to be "poetic". It stays readily accesable throughout, which is surely desireable for a poem that the author knows will receive international attention.
Her subjects in this poem other than the Everyman are: love, hope, sacrifice and the quotidien. In attempting to address as many people as possible, Ms. Alexander has perhaps succeeded. But in the attempt has failed to write a poem of any consequence because she has underestimated her audience vastly. She has reckoned the reading level of the general public roughly correct, but she has not correctly assessed their ability to want to understand, their craving for the novel and the beautiful; that the public might want music put to their Everyman lives seems out of the question. There is nothing so laudatory here. Rather, Ms. Alexander does America a great disservice by choosing the path most traveled. She has not, in the words of Roosevelt, "dared greatly". She has erred greatly in that her piece, I will not call it a poem, presents America to the world as a bunch of friendly halfwits waiting for the short bus that will take them to "something better down the road". A blindly hoping, emptily loving, mindlessly sacrificing lot.
Here's to you, token black female poet!