01-01-2012, 05:08 PM
I can never remember if a thread is to ramble or not, I don't think so though. Actually Ed, what you describe seems much more entertaining than the "Theatre of the Absurd" ever did to me, "Cascades of ca-ca!"
But I concur about being old-maids (ha!) or as Dylan said,
"I see people in the park forgetting their troubles and woes
They’re drinking and dancing, wearing bright-colored clothes
All the young men with their young women looking so good
Well, I’d trade places with any of them
In a minute, if I could"
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Too tangential I fear, too tangential in this new year! Back to the topic Robin!
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Multilayer
The term multilayer poem makes me think of Blake's fourfold vision, which meant it operated on several levels, such as historical, cultural, personal, emotional, mental, physical, or spiritual. That is to say his poem "America, A Prophecy" could be seen as commentary on a historical event, but it also works equally well as mankind's struggle to reach enlightenment. So that can be one meaning of the word as it applies to poetry.
However it can also refer to certain mechanisms used by poetry such as cadence, rhyme, meter and so on. Most people think of rhyme as being only end rhyme, but rhyme can be used through a poem to subtly emphasize certain things, it can be used in conjunction with cadence to create a definite (non-metrical), rhythmical pattern. Walt Whitman was very adapt at this.
My experience is that neither usage come about by chance. Certainly one must have the natural aptitude for it, just as one cannot be tone deaf and expect to be a vocalist, on the other hand it does not come about simply from talent, but a combination of talent and effort. In the beginning the efforts tend to look awkward, just as one looks when learning to ride a bike, but after one has had time to practice sufficiently the ability falls from conscious awareness, and simply begins to operate, because at some point one must give oneself to the muse. There are many poets whose works are layered in both of these ways, in fact, it is probably the first marker of an emerging poet, but the complexity that emerges is so vast it could never be something under conscious control. That is to say, something that one sat down and consciously figured out. So in the final analysis it is not so much a decision to be multilayered in ones poetry, but to commit to the preparation that makes such a thing possible.
Dale
But I concur about being old-maids (ha!) or as Dylan said,
"I see people in the park forgetting their troubles and woes
They’re drinking and dancing, wearing bright-colored clothes
All the young men with their young women looking so good
Well, I’d trade places with any of them
In a minute, if I could"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Too tangential I fear, too tangential in this new year! Back to the topic Robin!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Multilayer
The term multilayer poem makes me think of Blake's fourfold vision, which meant it operated on several levels, such as historical, cultural, personal, emotional, mental, physical, or spiritual. That is to say his poem "America, A Prophecy" could be seen as commentary on a historical event, but it also works equally well as mankind's struggle to reach enlightenment. So that can be one meaning of the word as it applies to poetry.
However it can also refer to certain mechanisms used by poetry such as cadence, rhyme, meter and so on. Most people think of rhyme as being only end rhyme, but rhyme can be used through a poem to subtly emphasize certain things, it can be used in conjunction with cadence to create a definite (non-metrical), rhythmical pattern. Walt Whitman was very adapt at this.
My experience is that neither usage come about by chance. Certainly one must have the natural aptitude for it, just as one cannot be tone deaf and expect to be a vocalist, on the other hand it does not come about simply from talent, but a combination of talent and effort. In the beginning the efforts tend to look awkward, just as one looks when learning to ride a bike, but after one has had time to practice sufficiently the ability falls from conscious awareness, and simply begins to operate, because at some point one must give oneself to the muse. There are many poets whose works are layered in both of these ways, in fact, it is probably the first marker of an emerging poet, but the complexity that emerges is so vast it could never be something under conscious control. That is to say, something that one sat down and consciously figured out. So in the final analysis it is not so much a decision to be multilayered in ones poetry, but to commit to the preparation that makes such a thing possible.
Dale
How long after picking up the brush, the first masterpiece?
The goal is not to obfuscate that which is clear, but make clear that which isn't.
The goal is not to obfuscate that which is clear, but make clear that which isn't.