Guardian Unlimited | Arts news | Duffy wins TS Eliot poetry prize

Guardian Unlimited Arts news Duffy wins TS Eliot poetry prize

Carol Ann Duffy, whose new collection Rapture is one of the top-selling poetry collections in the UK, last night won the £10,000 TS Eliot poetry prize.

The Poetry Book Society, which awards the prize, said: "This year's TS Eliot prize highlights a (some would say) rare moment of agreement between the critics and the booksellers as to what constitutes great poetry." (Guardian Unlimited)

Interview with Duffy

After Anna Akhmatova by Carol Duffy

Land by Carol Duffy

Tag: Poetry

Courage & Dissent

“Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.”   ~Ambrose Redmoon

I would say that at the time that Walter Cronkite made his famous remarks about the need for America to end the military action in Vietnam, he stood a great deal to lose.  It was a noble and courageous act on his part putting his reputation and career on the front line because of something he saw that was more important.

Perhaps today, in his years of retirement, he has less to lose in terms of economics. His livelihood is not at stake. Still, he has placed his reputation out on the line once again for what he sees as a greater good.

Cronkite has been a war correspondent. He’s seen a lot in his lifetime.  His words on the war in Iraq bear consideration by every American.

No doubt in the next few days, we well see White House officials questioning not only the wisdom of his remarks, but likely his loyalty and devotion to this country.  Courage comes in many colors.  Sometimes it is on the battlefield. Sometimes it is dissent. There are good reasons for dissent. It is not a sign of weakness or disrespect or disloyalty no matter what those bent on propagating this war say. Truths do count for something.

Cronkite: Time for U.S. to Leave Iraq

Walter Cronkite, a voice from the past, echoes a message from the past. Cronkite, who urged American after a CBS newscast on Feb. 27, 1968 - following the bloody Tet Offensive in Vietnam, to end the military mission also said that America should withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq.

Source

Pale as my pants

The new morning brought with it a desire to feel better. Though I was out an about yesterday, my wife thought I was as pale as the khaki white slacks I had on. I am better today, but knowing I have tomorrow off, I will to take it easy and hopefully by Tuesday I'll be at or near 100%.

That hasn't kept me from writing and this morning I have toyed with a draft of a poem I did last night. It is coming along but still needs work. I've stopped to blog this bit and perhaps take a short break from it. If I can craft this into something this week, I'll be quite happy as I look back on the weekend from which it started.

State of Poetry

Charles Mudede and James Latteier recently penned a bizarre piece in The Stranger that you may well have read. In short it was a diatribe about what is wrong with poetry today. I was amazed at their definition of poetry. Let's see, they said, "Poetry is the continued practice of poetry." You heard me right. It's one of those definitions from like a buck and a quarter notebook- insert dictionary. A self defining word. To this sentence they added, "This circular definition simply says that you can't start afresh." Start what afresh? What the fuck are they saying? New form? Good lord, poetry has been evolving since inception.

If we were going to have a "State of The Art of Poetry" address and discuss the current status of the art, I'm sure we could find plenty to bitch about. On the other hand I believe there is so much innovative writing being done today that is not even recognized.

Evidently Charles and James have an aversion to confessional poetry. That's fine. But they must surly realize that the confessional scene is not all that is out there. And some people still find well written confessional poetry to suit our taste.

What exactly are these two saying? Poetry is the practice of poetry? Good poems beget good poems? We should all mimic their concept of great poetry? There is nothing new under the sun that is good?

Given the negative tirade they have made on poetry in general, I believe they owe us a better description as to what poetry is to them.

Fighting The Sinus Thing

My head feels like a part of my brain is encased in concrete and the core is trying to throb inside the encasement. My throat is raw from sinus drainage. If you can't tell, I'm not feeling well.

For me feeling well is an absolute. Whereas being sick is all relative. That is because like so many males (if I may stereotype for a moment) I tend to resist the inevitable. There are degrees of sick. I may be sick, there is a chance I could be coming down with something but I am not there yet. I may be getting sick. I'm probably sick. I'm a wee bit sick. I'm sick. There are just so many degrees you can be before you are there. In the final analysis, I may damn well be on death's doorstep before I am actually "just plain sick."

So it is that I am going into work this morning but I will likely leave early. There are some important things that need to be done first. Then I'll check for a pulse and if I fine one, I'll go home. Maybe.

All This

You
are my ribbon
that ties the lose ends

The bounce
that makes all
my hurdles

The
sound that
soothes and moves
my soul

You are the gentle mist
the succulent kiss
and the whimper of bliss