A friend asked if I’d seen this op-ed by David Alpaugh in the Chronicle of Higher Ed. I responded to her directly, then figured, why waste a good rant? (Thanks for the nudge, Gretchen.)
Yes I did see this, and it ticked me off because it’s insipid. There’s too much poetry! The good stuff gets lost! MFA programs are cranking out too many writers! This is the sort of non-news, non-thinking blathering that pontificators of every generation seem to spout.
[CORRECTION: David Alpaugh himself has helpfully pointed out that the italicized portion of the preceding paragraph, which was originally placed in quotation marks, is not in fact a direct quote. He's absolutely correct; it's my characterization of the tone and main point of his op-ed. I hope the five other readers of my blog are not too disappointed in my lapse in rigor.]
Look a the final paragraph:
“Every now and then someone asks me, ‘Who are the best poets writing today?’ My answer? ‘I have no idea.’ Nor do I believe that anyone else does. I do have an uneasy feeling that a Blake and a Dickinson may be buried in the overgrowth, and I fear that neither current nor future readers may get to enjoy their art. That would be the most devastating result of the new math of poetry. The loss would be incalculable.”
No one has EVER had ANY idea who the best poets of their own times were. It is unknowable. Blake and Dickinson are perfect examples – they were both “buried in the overgrowth” IN THEIR OWN TIMES. Why should our time be any different? And why blame changes in media and publishing for it?
And why have an uneasy feeling about it? Relax, read the stuff you love, look around for more stuff that you might love, acknowledge the unalterable nature of Sturgeon’s Law, recognize the 95% of everything that is crud for what it is (fertilizer for the other 5%), and enjoy life.
That is all for now.
Wow, I could not agree with you more! I hate this kind of blathery bullshit. “Oh, wah wah, too many writers,” — sounds to me more like a “That’s the reason no one is worshipping my awesome!”. WHATEVER. Bleh! Good poetry? For me? IS THE SHIT I LIKE TO READ.
Yeah, this one too!