Thirteen Ways of Looking at 50+ Years of Poetry, 3

[David W. Parsley]

III.

The blackbird whirled in late autumn winds.

It was a shrinking part of the pantomime.

 

 

 

 

unpublished

© David W. Parsley 2011

[Aleksandra]

I like the tone of your creation, David. It's very deep.

 

Aleksandra

[Benjamin]

Hello Dave. A most enjoyable sequence of verses with much appreciated references. Blackbirds have figured so much in folk-lore/song and verse that it's easy to take them for granted. Benjamin.

 

 

Blackbird from a willow sings:

Tiny beak with voice that rings.

Yellow bill, like coal his coat,

Merry music from his throat,

 

Anonymous 9th century monk.

[tonyv]

But which author does it represent, Dave??? Is it still Stevens? No matter, I'm somewhere on the late autumn winds ...

 

Tony

[David W. Parsley]

I like the tone of your creation, David. It's very deep.

 

Aleksandra

 

Thank you, Aleksandra. I must defer to the master himself, Wallace Stevens, as creating the original sense of wonder and depth underlying this stanza. My parody is sufficiently subtle to leave that part undisturbed. I'm glad that the original power speaks to you.

 

- Dave

[David W. Parsley]

Hello Dave. A most enjoyable sequence of verses with much appreciated references. Blackbirds have figured so much in folk-lore/song and verse that it's easy to take them for granted. Benjamin.

 

 

Blackbird from a willow sings:

Tiny beak with voice that rings.

Yellow bill, like coal his coat,

Merry music from his throat,

 

Anonymous 9th century monk.

 

Fascinating find, Benjamin. Where did you dig it up?

 

Thanks for sharing your appreciation of this sequence. Any suggestions are welcome!

 

- Dave

[David W. Parsley]

But which author does it represent, Dave??? Is it still Stevens? No matter, I'm somewhere on the late autumn winds ...

 

Tony

 

I think the incremental release process is muddying the water a little. A lot of the details of the piece took form over the last weekend so I am in a position to provide an outline to it:

 

1. Mock Stevens (just an irreverent Dave) denouncing state of poetry over last fifty years.

2. Parody of Wallace Stevens himself (!)

3. Mock Stevens denouncing state of poetry over last fifty years.

4. Parody of John Ashbery

5. Mock Stevens denouncing state of poetry over last fifty years.

6. Parody of Theordore Roethke lampooning Sharon Olds and others

7. Parody of Anne Sexton

8. Parody of Pound/Eliot (Kant Toes) - pushing the definition of "fifty"...

9. Parody of William Carlos Williams

10. Parody of beat poets

11. Parody of e.e. cummings

12. Parody of W.S. Merwin

13. Mock Stevens denouncing state of poetry over last fifty years.

 

Stevens of course provides (unwittingly) the framework for the whole thing and keeps poking his head like a prankster into each section to mess up everybody's style. Mock Stevens is just a mask for me to don every once in a while like the Chorus in a Greek tragedy to move the story along. And be a little mean.

 

Hope this long-winded reply helps.

 

- Dave

[tonyv]

It helps a lot, Dave. Thank you for providing the "playlist" for the series.

 

Tony :)