Comments on: PSA honors haiku — Roberta Beary’s The Unworn Necklace http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-the-unworn-necklace/ breathless punditry and one-breath poetry with David Giacalone Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:58:52 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: David Giacalone http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-the-unworn-necklace/comment-page-1/#comment-175450 David Giacalone Wed, 23 Apr 2008 18:55:51 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-th#comment-175450 Thanks to everyone who has stopped by to congratulate Roberta, John Barlow, and Snapshot Press. John (Barlow), many thanks for your thoughtful comment on cyclic themes and the importance of each individual poem. You are certainly correct that Roberta's ability to craft a cycle out of years of poem-writing is most rare and inimitable. Thanks to everyone who has stopped by to congratulate Roberta, John Barlow, and Snapshot Press.

John (Barlow), many thanks for your thoughtful comment on cyclic themes and the importance of each individual poem. You are certainly correct that Roberta’s ability to craft a cycle out of years of poem-writing is most rare and inimitable.

]]> By: John Barlow http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-the-unworn-necklace/comment-page-1/#comment-175444 John Barlow Wed, 23 Apr 2008 18:07:43 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-th#comment-175444 David – just a quick note in appreciation of f/k/a. Your ‘afterthoughts’ of today (April 23) seem particularly important to the developing discussion. Many of the Snapshot Press single-author collections, or at least those I have been fortunate enough to edit, contain cyclic elements – beyond the traditional sense of season. But fundamentally they are collections of individual poems. Most of the ‘sequential’ details are subtle, perhaps too unrecognizably so in some cases, though I like to think this contributes to the essential consideration that a collection becomes more than the sum of its parts, and increases the potential of reward for readers who are prepared to invest in the poetry. I think it’s only when a group of high quality individual poems are brought together that such possibilities naturally arise, and this potential was perhaps taken to the extreme with the narrative approach in The Unworn Necklace, simply because that approach suited the work. The haiku and senryu weren’t written intentionally as a sequence – and indeed many poems ultimately weren’t included in the book for the good of the whole. Further, I’m not sure it would be wise for a poet to set out to create something like The Unworn Necklace, as fine a collection as it is. As haiku poets we must each do our own thing, as Roberta did here, not try to bend that to the ‘fashion’ of the day. In my experience it takes many years to shape a worthwhile collection anyway, and fashions are by nature prone to change! David – just a quick note in appreciation of f/k/a. Your ‘afterthoughts’ of today (April 23) seem particularly important to the developing discussion. Many of the Snapshot Press single-author collections, or at least those I have been fortunate enough to edit, contain cyclic elements – beyond the traditional sense of season. But fundamentally they are collections of individual poems. Most of the ‘sequential’ details are subtle, perhaps too unrecognizably so in some cases, though I like to think this contributes to the essential consideration that a collection becomes more than the sum of its parts, and increases the potential of reward for readers who are prepared to invest in the poetry. I think it’s only when a group of high quality individual poems are brought together that such possibilities naturally arise, and this potential was perhaps taken to the extreme with the narrative approach in The Unworn Necklace, simply because that approach suited the work. The haiku and senryu weren’t written intentionally as a sequence – and indeed many poems ultimately weren’t included in the book for the good of the whole. Further, I’m not sure it would be wise for a poet to set out to create something like The Unworn Necklace, as fine a collection as it is. As haiku poets we must each do our own thing, as Roberta did here, not try to bend that to the ‘fashion’ of the day. In my experience it takes many years to shape a worthwhile collection anyway, and fashions are by nature prone to change!

]]> By: Randy Brooks http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-the-unworn-necklace/comment-page-1/#comment-175438 Randy Brooks Wed, 23 Apr 2008 17:03:13 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-th#comment-175438 Congratulations Roberta! UNWORN is a beautiful collection to read. Congratulations Roberta! UNWORN is a beautiful collection to read.

]]> By: Curtis Dunlap http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-the-unworn-necklace/comment-page-1/#comment-175425 Curtis Dunlap Wed, 23 Apr 2008 14:35:55 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-th#comment-175425 Fabulous news! I was re-reading The Unworn Necklace when I received the news. Congratulations Roberta and thank you Snapshot Press/John! Blessings to all, Curtis Fabulous news! I was re-reading The Unworn Necklace when I received the news.

Congratulations Roberta and thank you Snapshot Press/John!

Blessings to all,

Curtis

]]> By: John Stevenson http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-the-unworn-necklace/comment-page-1/#comment-175302 John Stevenson Tue, 22 Apr 2008 23:09:35 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-th#comment-175302 Hurrah for Roberta, Snapshot Press, and the future of haiku in English. Hurrah for Roberta, Snapshot Press, and the future of haiku in English.

]]> By: Alan Summers http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-the-unworn-necklace/comment-page-1/#comment-175275 Alan Summers Tue, 22 Apr 2008 20:31:50 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-th#comment-175275 Congratulations Roberta! Well done Snapshot Press! all my best, Alan Congratulations Roberta!
Well done Snapshot Press!

all my best,

Alan

]]> By: David Giacalone http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-the-unworn-necklace/comment-page-1/#comment-175240 David Giacalone Tue, 22 Apr 2008 18:08:07 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-th#comment-175240 Thanks, Yu. Only one hug? I'm going to let Roberta have this one. Thanks, Yu. Only one hug? I’m going to let Roberta have this one.

]]> By: Yu Chang http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-the-unworn-necklace/comment-page-1/#comment-175237 Yu Chang Tue, 22 Apr 2008 17:53:05 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/2008/04/22/psa-honors-haiku-roberta-bearys-th#comment-175237 Congratulations, Roberta! And thank you, David, for sharing this wonderful news! A big hug, Yu Congratulations, Roberta!
And thank you, David, for sharing
this wonderful news!

A big hug,
Yu

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