A comment on a previous post got me to thinking:
What if someone created a listserv for Asian American poetry and poetics? Would anyone join such a list? What would be its function? Would it help nuture a community, or would it be isolating and exclusive? Is there already such a thing and I don't know about it?
Even a cursory trip through blogland shows that there's a lot of Asian American poets out there blogging; and I'm sure for every blogger there's a dozen more poets.
Here's the thing, of course: the Poetics list, at least ostensibly, operates under an aesthetic principle (that of "experimental" or "avant-garde" writing). Would an Asian American poetry list have any such principle, or would it invite in all readers regardless of aesthetic? If so, would they have anything to talk about?
Hi, Tim. I was thinking something very similar after reading your recent posts and also going back to the buffalo archives to take a look at what you were talking about. I think an Asian American one would definitely be interesting; a Poets of Color listserv might also work well. I don't get into a lot of poetry discussions over lists or email groups, just because I've seen a lot of it turn into petty arguments over aesthetics, as opposed to more in-depth discussions about how aesthetics relate to identity, etc. However, it would be interesting to have a listerv of poets who actually do figure race into their idea of poetics, simply because it seems unrealistic not to do so.
ReplyDeleteAnyway... sounds interesting to me. By the way, hi, I'm Heather. :)
An Asian-Am poetics list could be wonderful. There's a weird sociology to listserves that's not as interesting as the psychology of it. I mean -- when smart, charismatic voices are contributing it seems to raise the level of the conversation. It's a little like the ideal semester when the right mix of students is in a classroom and everything seems, well, magical.
ReplyDeleteOff the top of my head, what if there were a listserve that set as a guideline -- no formal announcements about readings, events, calls for submissions? Aren't there enough venues online and elsewhere for that? Would it be productive/ethical to be this kind of territorial about a real meaningful dialogue about race and poetics? I wonder if it would help minimize careerist footwork so common in listserves (and elsewhere) and get to the good muck of poetry that we could all probably benefit from.
Heather, Pam, Patrick--thanks for your comments.
ReplyDeleteI must say the more I think about it, the more I think there's a great potential for a list of this kind.
Pam, you've pretty much spelled out all of the questions I've been thinking about. I'm also very attracted to the idea of a list that has a distinct aesthetic orientation, rather than one that simply appeals to a socially defined group regardless of aesthetic. But that, of course, raises the question for me of what kind of category "Asian American" is. I've struggled a great deal over this question, and I do think that the "Asian American" in "Asian American poetry" does have an aesthetic valence; while I don't think that anyone has yet done the work that would be required to identify a distinctively Asian American poetic tradition, with distinctive forms, themes, and styles, I think that kind of work could, and shoud, be done. Perhaps that would be part of what the list would be for.
i'd be very interested in a list discussion poetics without the baggage of twits and their (denied) bigotry. i'm not Asian/Asian-American, and i'm not very well-read in Asian poetry, but knowing little about a subject has never stopped me from enjoying discussions before!
ReplyDelete