The Wisdom of Whores » poetry

Still in the poetry corner: Head, heart and balls.

elizabeth — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 11:59:23 +0000

Rapping about sex is nothing new. But it takes a cute Frenchman to do it in a classic metre, in a studio full of intellectuals sheathed in black. And to express so perfectly why public health programmes that appeal to only one of the three citadels of Boy are destined to fail.

Thanks to Catherine Lugrin for unearthing this gem.

Poetry corner: How to continue

elizabeth — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 10:38:02 +0000

Last night, I happened to be trawling around some of London’s gay entertainment establishments. I was struck by how much things have changed since John Ashbery was moved to write his classic elegy to AIDS, How to Continue. Here it is, lest we forget.

How to Continue” by John Ashbery

Oh there once was a woman
and she kept a shop
selling trinkets to tourists
not far from a dock
who came to see what life could be
far back on the island.

And it was always a party there
always different but very nice
New friends to give you advice
or fall in love with you which is nice
and each grew so perfectly from the other
it was a marvel of poetry
and irony

And in this unsafe quarter
much was scary and dirty
but no one seemed to mind
very much
the parties went on from house to house
There were friends and lovers galore
all around the store
There was moonshine in winter
and starshine in summer
and everybody was happy to have discovered
what they discovered

And then one day the ship sailed away
There were no more dreamers just sleepers
in heavy attitudes on the dock
moving as if they knew how
among the trinkets and the souvenirs
the random shops of modern furniture

and a gale came and said
it is time to take all of you away
from the tops of the trees to the little houses
on little paths so startled

And when it became time to go
they none of them would leave without the other
for they said we are all one here
and if one of us goes the other will not go
and the wind whispered it to the stars
the people all got up to go
and looked back on love

There’s an interesting essay about Ashbery in this week’s New York Times books section. His most recent collection, “Notes from the Air”, was published last year.

Girl is girl and man will sweetalk

elizabeth — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 11:28:28 +0000

Jamaican-Ghanain poet Kwame Dawes has been reporting on HIV in his Caribbean homeland, in poetry and prose. He reads his poems on a snappy website, supported by the Pulitzer Center.

Annoyingly, the site doesn’t allow for linking to specific items. I commend to you the poem Making Ends Meet, which tells of the delicate relationship between weary mother and newly-blossoming daughter.

Photo by Joshua Cogan. Thanks to Christopher Hennessey for bringing Kwame’s work to my attention.

500 years of fucking in print

elizabeth — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 14:23:15 +0000

London’s a great city to walk around; reading an anthology of London poetry before embarking on another epic city walk, I came across a couple of gems from the Scottish poet William Dunbar. Here’s Dunbar’s description of courtship, in a modern translation:

“His pretty beard was combed and trimmed, but it was spattered with broth, and he was a towny, pushy and foolish. He held her fast, he kissed her and fondled her, as if he were overpowered by passion. Yet what he was doing showed that he wanted to fuck.”

Preening boy lets his lust get the better of his table manners. It is exactly 500 years since Dunbar became the first person to use the f-word in print, but it seems that little has changed.

(Translation from London: A collection of Poetry of Place, edited by Barnaby Rogerson).