‘to half understand a poem’

Apr 30, 2022 ~ daveevaphotograms ~ Leave a comment

Three thoughts on understanding poems, or on not understanding them, where understanding may not be the point, or not understanding may be beside the point. Kayo Chingonyi: ’teachers are rarely encouraged to say ”you might not get this because there might not be anything to get but you still might find it interesting”. I think … Continue reading ‘to half understand a poem’

Commonplaces

Jan 21, 2021Apr 30, 2021 ~ daveevaphotograms ~ Leave a comment

‘This handful of poems is almost arbitrarily drawn from the Borgesian, idiosyncratic anthology that anyone who lives by words will come to carry’. Jane Hirshfield I’m thinking of this blog as a kind of personal anthology, but also as a sort of commonplace book. ‘Commonplaces’ were familiar in the Renaissance and the nineteenth century; scrapbooks … Continue reading Commonplaces