What does 'E' stand for, next to a poem title?

[Senna Jawa]

Regards,

 

[Lauren Hynde]

Editor's choice. They're poems (and stories) that Laurel thought were better (or simply that drew her attention somehow?) than the rest on a given day. It doesn't mean anything special, other than the opinion of an individual...

 

[Senna Jawa]

Editor's choice. They're poems (and stories) that Laurel thought were better (or simply that drew her attention somehow?) than the rest on a given day. It doesn't mean anything special, other than the opinion of an individual...

And she should keep her opinion to herself or post it on this board. We can all see how "well" her "algorithm" for "fraud" works--pathetic.

 

[Angeline]

E

Not wanting to sound too toady here--because I got a few of them--but it is her site, after all. She can do what she wants, whether we like it or not.

Of course I liked getting them (the Es) because it will get me more reads, but quite honestly the specific feedback I get from (mostly) the people here are what I most value. There are a few people here--Senna and Lauren, also OT and Eve and Judo--who really help me with insightful reviews.

 

[WickedEve]

One thing that concerns me about the E for poems is that the poet who receives it may be under the impression that his/her poem doesn't need any more improvement. Many of the E poems have been very good. I always agree with her on her selections of Angeline's and sp's poems and some others. But a couple of poems this month have not been very well written. I'd like to see the poets on this board. I think they may be missing out on learning more by being under the impression that their work has achieved a level that it has not.
Then again, the E may encourage them to write more. I'm really not sure.

 

[OT]

The E as the equivalent a mention the New Poems thread.

If "someone" liked a poem, I like to go peek to see if they saw something that I may have missed. (sometimes they do, sometimes I wonder about the mention)

I used to hate movie critics until I learned that the role of a movie critic is not to pick good movies. A good critic is consistent.

 

[Angeline]

Eve said:

One thing that concerns me about the E for poems is that the poet who receives it may be under the impression that his/her poem doesn't need any more improvement.

Eve, you hit the nail on the head. No writer should ever rest on laurels. That's a pastime for fools, imho. Anybody who doesn't get that there are always new things to learn and always always room for improvement doesn't get it. Period.

I feel really good when someone likes a poem I wrote. I see that as an analogy with the Voyager satellite that travels into deep space sending out signals, and getting a response (not that it has, lol, but you see what I mean). You post a poem and it's throwing your words into space. To have someone read it and understand, to know you've connected with some stranger somewhere, is exciting. But I also know that if I don't keep trying to push into new approaches or understandings, my writing get stale, then starts falling apart. That's something I've learned here--the other poets here have helped me see that.

And this is not just true of the E, but a mention on the new poems list, someone giving your poem a 5, whatever. Really, it's all relative. Besides, what's important to your growth as a writer is the next poem you write or revise, not the one you wrote yesterday.

 

[WickedEve]

One thing that keeps me aware of how much improvement my writing needs is to go to two different boards. A poem that's praised on one board is many times torn apart on another. And this keeps my big head from floating away. lol

 

[Senna Jawa]

Eve said:

And this is not just true of the E, but a mention on the new poems list, someone giving your poem a 5, whatever. Really, it's all relative. Besides, what's important to your growth as a writer is the next poem you write or revise, not the one you wrote yesterday.

And then, see above, Angeline quotes Neruda to illustrate her point. Indeed that quote from Neruda is void of poetry except for "touch a bell". Otherwise and altogether it is a boring, poetically useless, awfully wordy text. A perfect illustration, Angeline -- congratulations and thank you for the force and clarity with which you made your point.

Best regards,

 

[Angeline]

Senna, I like him and you don't. You can hate him all you want, but I still like him and I still like your poetry, too.

Oh and were I using a poem to illustrate my point, I'm not sure I would use that one. I might. I read it this morning and it appealed to me.

 

[Angeline]

A poem that's praised on one board is many times torn apart on another. And this keeps my big head from floating away.

Also true, Eve. I know there are other places where I can get a greater number of specific reviews of my poems--but some of them seem more about getting personal and one-upping each other than learning--I go to a few other places, too, but I try to focus on taking what's good from those reviews and letting the others play battle of the poetry egos, lol.

I see less of that here--and there are various reasons for it, imho--but it makes here a more collegial place for me.

 

[Senna Jawa]

Senna, I like him and you don't. You can hate him all you want, but I still like him and I still like your poetry, too.

[...]

But Angeline, I like Neruda's poetry a lot. I like his sensuality. On the other hand I never read a poem by him which would be free from serious defects. I don't know what he thought about himself, I am sure that he did in high terms (after reading the quote provided by you ) but he strikes me as someone who had enough of intuition and talent to write the strong fragments, but didn't know better to avoid glaring weaknesses, hje simply didn't know enough about poetry. And the quote provided by you makes it obvious, clear

Best regards,

 

[Angeline]

But Angeline, I like Neruda's poetry a lot. I like his sensuality. On the other hand I never read a poem by him which would be free from serious defects

Actually I agree--I just liked what that quote suggested to me about the folly of trying to understand oneself. I do not think it is a particularly good example of what Neruda can do.

I like Neruda for the same reason as you--when his poetry works, it evokes images that engage the senses. I love that. Maybe just my personal preference, but if one believes that effective poetry moves the reader (i.e., elicits knowing by feeling rather than by logic), and I do, then someone like Neruda, under the right circumstances, is very effective.

This is from his

Song of Despair

The memory of you emerges from the night around me.
The river mingles its stubborn lament with the sea.

Deserted like the dwarves at dawn.
It is the hour of departure, oh deserted one!

Cold flower heads are raining over my heart.
Oh pit of debris, fierce cave of the shipwrecked.

In you the wars and the flights accumulated.
From you the wings of the song birds rose.

You swallowed everything, like distance.
Like the sea, like time. In you everything sank!

It was the happy hour of assault and the kiss.
The hour of the spell that blazed like a lighthouse.

And this is another of his that I think is wonderful:

Love Sonnet XI

I crave your mouth, your voice, your hair.
Silent and starving, I prowl through the streets.
Bread does not nourish me, dawn disrupts me, all day
I hunt for the liquid measure of your steps.

I hunger for your sleek laugh,
your hands the color of a savage harvest,
hunger for the pale stones of your fingernails,
I want to eat your skin like a whole almond.

I want to eat the sunbeam flaring in your lovely body,
the sovereign nose of your arrogant face,
I want to eat the fleeting shade of your lashes,

and I pace around hungry, sniffing the twilight,
hunting for you, for your hot heart,
like a puma in the barrens of Quitratue.

I think I understand your point though, but are there poets in Western culture whom you think are poetic without a lot of flaws(i.e., without drifting away from image, metaphor, etc?)