"The HEAD, by way of the EAR, to the SYLLABLE
The HEART, by way of the BREATH, to the LINE”
- Charles Olson


Welcome to my poetry research blog! Here's a little background...

Poetry is, at its heart, a very acoustic phenomenon. Distinguished from prose through its emphasis on the use of sound, namely its distinctive rhythms, meters, and rhyme scheme, the earliest known poetry followed the oral tradition. Among the most famous examples of early poetry are Homer’s “Iliad” and “Odyssey,” which were transmitted by word of mouth for centuries.

Following the spread of literacy, poetry increasingly became a written form. Though the play of sounds and rhythms were still very important, and though poets gained the ability to use the visual presentation of their poems to shape the meaning of their work, poetry lost much of its performance aspect. However, during the twentieth century, there was a poetic movement that began re-emphasizing the importance of sound and performance in poetry.

This blog will track my research into the developments in performance poetry in the modern United States. My principal focus will be on poetry slams, but I will be investigating all forms of performance poetry. I’m taking a multi-media approach to this research: not only will I be using articles and books, I will also be watching videos, youtube clips, and, most importantly, attending actual Slams. I’m especially excited for the National Poetry Slam in August.

Specifically, here you will find a record of the performance events that I have and intend to attend.

“Sometimes a good slam strategy is to give the audience something they didn’t know they needed until they’ve heard it. Sometimes it’s aesthetic deduction, sometimes it’s angelic inspiration, but it’s always being true to yourself, your teammates, your muse, and your art."
-- Daniel S. Solis

Monday, August 18, 2008

August 7, 2008 - Madison, WI: Round 2, Bout 1

At Nationals, the rounds are held simultaneously at a variety of venues. For the second round of competition, there are two series of bouts, one at 8 PM and one at 10 PM. I went to The Brink, a lounge several blocks away from the Capital Building. Cincinnati, Albuquerque, Chicago, NY were completing during the first round. Baltimore, New Paltz, Minneapolis, and Silver Spring would be competing during the second Bout.

BOUT 1

The first bout was tightly contested, and the difference between the first and second place teams was on the order of tenths of a point. The scores didn’t increase much overall, however, certain topics tended to score particularly well. For instance, New York had a two-member group piece presented as a letter to Katie Couric that scored a 29.3 out of 30, and Chicago had a love poem in four parts about a relationship that ended because the one partner didn’t get the poetry of the other that scored a 28.5. Chicago also had a high-scoring poem (28.2) exploring religious policy and the lack of tolerance to homosexuals.

Ultimately, the results were as follows:

4. Cincinnati 104.8

3. Albuquerque 108.6

2. Chicago 110.6

1. New York 110.8

Additionally, here’s a breakdown of the major topics observed from the bout.

Geography 1

Homosexuality 1

Literature/Writing 2

Love 1

Politics 2

Pop Culture 2

Race 4

Religion 1

War 1

Women 4

Group Pieces 3 Two of these had two people, one had four

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