"After decimation, a formal feeling comes." That is a very fine line, flat and American-sounding. With the sculptural quality of your mind, these Roman studies suit you perfectly. You seem to work in marble and stone, not words. That won't always do, as you realize, and one of your great strengths (you have several, in my opinion) is your ability to choose subject matter that suits the temper of your imagination and its lingual contours. Lord, I'm high-falutin'!
Thank you Peter. Your high falutin words are much appreciated. I do feel pretty comfortable in the style I've been working on. I've been working of a much different poem too, the last few weeks, with a modern subject. I'm not sure if it'll work, but I am trying to branch out a bit.
That's going to be interesting to see. I'm thinking of that famous exchange between Wallace Stevens and Robert Frost. Stephens: "Your problem, Robert, is you write poems about subjects." Frost: "Your problem, Wallace, is you write poems about bric-a-bric." (I may not have it quite right, but the gist is there.) You, Mr. C., are certainly Team Subject, despite your love for WS. I, on the other hand, am a proud member of Team Bric-a-Brac.
"After decimation, a formal feeling comes." That is a very fine line, flat and American-sounding. With the sculptural quality of your mind, these Roman studies suit you perfectly. You seem to work in marble and stone, not words. That won't always do, as you realize, and one of your great strengths (you have several, in my opinion) is your ability to choose subject matter that suits the temper of your imagination and its lingual contours. Lord, I'm high-falutin'!
Thank you Peter. Your high falutin words are much appreciated. I do feel pretty comfortable in the style I've been working on. I've been working of a much different poem too, the last few weeks, with a modern subject. I'm not sure if it'll work, but I am trying to branch out a bit.
That's going to be interesting to see. I'm thinking of that famous exchange between Wallace Stevens and Robert Frost. Stephens: "Your problem, Robert, is you write poems about subjects." Frost: "Your problem, Wallace, is you write poems about bric-a-bric." (I may not have it quite right, but the gist is there.) You, Mr. C., are certainly Team Subject, despite your love for WS. I, on the other hand, am a proud member of Team Bric-a-Brac.
Even with what happened to Brutus in the end, I still respect his rhetoric starting with "Friends, Romans, Countrymen! Lend me your ears!"
I think that was Antony, although Brutus certainly used his fair share of rhetoric to sway the people.
An interesting poem. I like the images.
Thank you Samuel.