Monday, December 20, 2010

Robert Pinsky

Robert Pinsky’s Selected Poems will be published in March, 2011. His recent anthology with audio CD is Essential Pleasures. His honors include the Italian Premio Capri, the Korean Manhae Award, and the Harold Washington Award from the city of Chicago. His best-selling translation The Inferno of Dante was awarded the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Pinsky is a former U.S. Poet Laureate. The videos from his Favorite Poem Project can be viewed here.



SHIRT

The back, the yoke, the yardage. Lapped seams,
The nearly invisible stitches along the collar
Turned in a sweatshop by Koreans or Malaysians

Gossiping over tea and noodles on their break
Or talking money or politics while one fitted
This armpiece with its overseam to the band

Of cuff I button at my wrist. The presser, the cutter,
The wringer, the mangle. The needle, the union,
The treadle, the bobbin. The code. The infamous blaze

At the Triangle Factory in nineteen-eleven.
One hundred and forty-six died in the flames
On the ninth floor, no hydrants, no fire escapes—

The witness in a building across the street
Who watched how a young man helped a girl to step
Up to the windowsill, then held her out

Away from the masonry wall and let her drop.
And then another. As if he were helping them up
To enter a streetcar, and not eternity.

A third before he dropped her put her arms
Around his neck and kissed him. Then he held
Her into space, and dropped her. Almost at once

He stepped up to the sill himself, his jacket flared
And fluttered up from his shirt as he came down,
Air filling up the legs of his gray trousers—

Like Hart Crane's Bedlamite, “shrill shirt ballooning.”
Wonderful how the pattern matches perfectly
Across the placket and over the twin bar-tacked

Corners of both pockets, like a strict rhyme
Or a major chord. Prints, plaids, checks,
Houndstooth, Tattersall, Madras. The clan tartans

Invented by mill-owners inspired by the hoax of Ossian,
To control their savage Scottish workers, tamed
By a fabricated heraldry: MacGregor,

Bailey, MacMartin. The kilt, devised for workers
to wear among the dusty clattering looms.
Weavers, carders, spinners. The loader,

The docker, the navvy. The planter, the picker, the sorter
Sweating at her machine in a litter of cotton
As slaves in calico headrags sweated in fields:

George Herbert, your descendant is a Black
Lady in South Carolina, her name is Irma
And she inspected my shirt. Its color and fit

And feel and its clean smell have satisfied
both her and me. We have culled its cost and quality
Down to the buttons of simulated bone,

The buttonholes, the sizing, the facing, the characters
Printed in black on neckband and tail. The shape,
The label, the labor, the color, the shade. The shirt.


When was this poem composed? How did it start?

The poem began with a quite different direction. I was thinking of a character, a woman, a sculptor whose work involved black iron and varnished wood, forms vaguely like human muscles but with little wheels and so forth. When she was a child, her single-parent mother did piece-work, and the child was fascinated visually by her mother's treadle sewing machine, that supported them. It was mixed up with playing Solitaire or War and her fascination with the designs and faces of the royalty cards. An unusually plot-ridden, fictional notion for me.

Then I became hypnotized—much more characteristically—by the sounds of the consonants in the language for the parts of those handsome old machines: the treadle, the needle. And then, what else—the bobbin. And what might chime with that? Well, the union. Which led to the old terminology for different garment-worker jobs, and to Irving Howe's book, and to the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, and the probably-fake, vaguely attributed account of the young man helping the young women and then jumping himself. A story in the attractive realm of what might-be-true. And that led to remembering the left-wing Englishman Hobsbawm's book The Invention of Tradition, where years before I had been delighted by his debunking of the kilt, along with the Coronation regalia and so forth: all nineteenth-century fabrications claiming to be ancient, he says. And the racialist part: the Highland Scots being considered sub-human by the English who tried to tame them as factory workers.

How many revisions did this poem undergo? How much time elapsed between the first and final drafts?

Very little once I abandoned the sculptor and her story, everything I've described came probably in an afternoon. The concealed blank verse helped it go quickly.

Do you believe in inspiration? How much of this poem was “received” and how much was the result of sweat and tears?

Inspiration comes from great works of art: you remember the feeling you got from something created by Charlie Parker or Emily Dickinson or Buster Keaton or Francisco Goya or Nikolai Gogol or Johannes Brahms . . . and you start wanting to create something that would give that feeling to other people. The spirit you breathe in, you want to exhale. It’s real. The process is visible in some of the videos at the Favorite Poem Project website.

How did this poem arrive at its final form? Did you consciously employ any principles of technique?

“Consciously” is not quite the right word for the way an old prizefighter or hornplayer like me works in iambic pentameter. I have done it for so long, lived with it so intensely, that it is like walking. The discovery and the difficulty is in where you walk.

How long after you finished this poem did it first appear in print?

I don’t remember. I think it was in The New Yorker, and they usually take a few months.

How long do you let a poem “sit” before you send it off into the world? Do you have any rules about this or does your practice vary with every poem?

A small number of friends and relatives help me decide a work is finished. (Or not!) Once it passes that test, I’m ready to sing it on the streetcorner . . . figuratively speaking.

Could you talk about fact and fiction and how this poem negotiates the two?

The old newspaper account, which quotes “a witness” and from which I steal (and pentameter-ize) language like “into a streetcar, and not eternity” is probably a sensationalist fake. But nobody can prove that—it might have happened. In the realm of imagination, it is true: which means that in the realm of reality it has meaning. Even though it may originate with one of those guys hanging out with Rosalind Russell, playing cards, in His Girl Friday. More meaning, I can hope, than my true answers on a form, more meaning than the facts of my biography, date and place of birth, etc. More meaning than the term paper I didn’t write about the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. Meaning means a lot to me: matters to me more than fact and fiction.

Is this a narrative poem?

I'm too goofy and impatient to write a narrative poem, but it has chunks of narrative in it, I hope bouncing off one another and other elements like bumper cars on the boardwalk.

Do you remember who you were reading when you wrote this poem? Any influences you’d care to disclose?

Hard to say. Howe’s book, Hobsbawm’s book, George Herbert’s poems, Sam Johnson teasing and debunking the sacred hippy baloney of Ossian, Gogol, Babel, Alan Dugan, Faulkner . . . who knows. All of them in the realm of might-have-happened.

Do you have any particular audience in mind when you write, an ideal reader?

Sometimes, at some point, I try to imagine myself if I hadn’t written it. Sometimes—I'll confess—I try to imagine some dead master of craft—Emily Dickinson or Wallace Stevens or William Butler Yeats—looking at it and saying something like “I don't know what he’s trying to say, but he has spent his time practicing in the woodshed, he has the chops.” I try to imagine that! I’m not saying I succeed . . . and it’s just about making lines and sentences.

Did you let anyone see drafts of this poem before you finished it? Is there an individual or a group of individuals with whom you regularly share work?

A small number of poet friends. Ones I admire; I’m very fortunate in that.

How does this poem differ from other poems of yours?

Hard for me to say. It may speak more directly than most from my lower-middle-class background, the scarey time in my childhood after my father got fired. And the implicit chutzpah of claiming the upper-class Englishman George Herbert as my spiritual or poetic ancestor.

What is American about this poem?

Every damn thing about it—especially the parts about European history, the Kilt and Herbert and Ossian.

Was this poem finished or abandoned?

I have done my best with it. Apollo or Dionysus might be able to improve it.

62 comments:

  1. strange coincidence--I just sent Mr Pinsky a note telling him how much I like this poem and then I found this! Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How A Poem Happens: Robert Pinsky >>>>> Download Now

      >>>>> Download Full

      How A Poem Happens: Robert Pinsky >>>>> Download LINK

      >>>>> Download Now

      How A Poem Happens: Robert Pinsky >>>>> Download Full

      >>>>> Download LINK fc

      Delete
  2. Wonderful! Speaking of favorite poems, this is my favorite Robert Pinsky poem. I remember hearing him read it at the University of Michigan, circa 1994 or '95, in his so-carefully-enunciating deep voice: "The back, the yoke, the yardage...."

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks, Brian,
    I've always liked this poem a lot, and these answers are all interesting and illuminating. Did I ever show the poem to you in class? This makes me want to teach it next semester . . .

    J.D.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I agree so greatly that meaning is far more important than fact or fiction...just that idea settles me down some.

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a wonderful interview to read...loved this.

    ReplyDelete
  6. If you're trying hard to write poetry, you need to come across something as illuminating as this interview with someone so willing to take a humble look at his success just to give you hope. Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Ha, speaking of coincidence, I used to teach this poem in my classes for YEARS! Fantastic interview, too.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks for your post. I greatly appreciate your post. Bangla Sad Sms

    ReplyDelete
  9. Bangla Sad Sms Koster Sad Status and best Bangla sad sms 2020, In this post you will get many nice fresh koster sad sms if you...

    ReplyDelete
  10. In this place Bd Govt Job Circular 2020 you will find new and latest Govt Job Bd, because here we are published everyday new Government Job Circular.Government Job BdHello Everyone In This Categories You Will Find All Type of Government Jobs Circular, Government Bank
    Jobs Circular, Govt Job Scheduled, Govt Job Seat ...Govt Job In BangladeshBd Government Job Circular 2020: Latest Govt Job In Bangladesh, This is our main property of the job finding site in the Bangladesh.Palli Biddut Samity Job Circularhere you will find latest and New Government Job Circular & Vacancies in 2020 for Male & Female both gender’s person in Bangladesh.Palli Biddut Samity Job Circular Also see thebangladesh army job circularbd 2020.

    ReplyDelete
  11. We TreatAssignmentHelp is a team of experts professional academic writers who provide the best Assignment Writing Help in UK with Online Management Assignment Help, Business Environment Assignment Help UK, MBA Assignment Help In UK for students in the UK. Now you can get professional writing help with all your academic writing easily! Visit Here Fore More:-UK Assignment Help Online | Assignment Writing Help in UK | Leading Professional Writers for Assignment Writing Services | Leading Professional Writers for Assignment Writing Services | UK Assignment Help | Best Academic Assignment | Treat Assignment Help | Best Assignment Help | Best Academic Services

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anal porn - collection porn videos in good quality and absolutely free. Come here and watch hd anal porn in various categories and tags. Anal porn hd free only. Anal porn

    ReplyDelete
  13. Robert Pinsky is one of America’s foremost poet-critics. Often called the last of the “civic” or public poets, Pinsky’s criticism and verse reflect his concern for a contemporary poetic diction that nonetheless speaks of a wider experience. Elected Poet Laureate of the United States in 1997, his tenure was marked by ambitious efforts to prove the power of poetry—not just as an intellectual pursuit in the ivory tower, but as a meaningful and integral part of American life. “I think poetry is a vital part of our intelligence, our ability to learn, our ability to remember, the relationship between our bodies and minds,” he told the Christian Science Monitor. “Poetry’s highest purpose is to provide a unique sensation of coordination between the intelligence, emotions and the body. It’s one of the most fundamental pleasures a person can experience.”
    -------------------------------------
    Google Telefoonnummer

    ReplyDelete
  14. I always turn to Vampire any time I want to. I become a Vampire because of how people treat me, this world is a wicked world and not fair to any body. at the snack of my finger things are made happened. am now a Powerful Man and no one step on me without an apology goes free. i turn to Human being also at any time i want to. and am one of the most dreaded Man in my Town. i become a Vampire through the help of my friend who introduce me into a Vampire Kingdom by given me their email. if you want to become a Powerful Vampire kindly contact the Vampire Kingdom on their Email: Vampirelord7878@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  15. The reason behind the Netflix error code tvq-st-131 is a weak connection between your device and Netflix services. In the article below, we showed you the ways to fix Netflix error code tvq-st-131.Netflix Telefoonnummer

    ReplyDelete
  16. Thank you for this information here i found something similar to this. It was very helpful and informative.
    For details visit here FacebookTelefoonnummer

    ReplyDelete
  17. is a typical issue for brother printer user. This issue can show from different motivations to defective Brother printer setups or drivers. How to fix Brother printer not printing issue Regardless of whether your brother printer associated with wifi however not printing or have the most exceedingly terrible availability issue, Undoubtedly, some misconfiguration can be the noticeable explanations behind the equivalent. Consequently, before immediately beginning with the investigating steps, how about we take a gander at the plausible explanations behind the unfit to print issue.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Thank you for providing such a reliable information. I am glade I have found this blog. Really helpful. eBay contact Nederland

    ReplyDelete
  19. I haven’t seen such quality work in a long time. Great job, Keep it up!
    Facebook bellen nederland

    ReplyDelete
  20. This is an informative blog. Keep it up. I am looking forward to this kind of blog. I took a lot away from this blog. also, your thoughts were very well organized as far as how you went into details and made it very. Thanks
    visit site

    ReplyDelete
  21. Hi, I want to thank you for sharing this interesting information.
    it's great that nowadays we have an opportunity to share our thoughts. it seems to me, blogs and online services are our future. One and good example.
    ===========================
    Google Bellen

    ReplyDelete
  22. Hi...
    Robert Pinsky is one of America’s foremost poet-critics. Often called the last of the “civic” or public poets, Pinsky’s criticism and verse reflect his concern for a contemporary poetic diction that nonetheless speaks of a wider experience.
    you are also read more Netflix Belen

    ReplyDelete
  23. wonderful post
    i think for any query or support you should go here
    .............
    Instagram Bellen

    ReplyDelete
  24. Thank you for providing such reliable information. I am glad I have found this blog. Really helpful
    Gmail bellen

    ReplyDelete
  25. Looking for Mywifiext plan? We are here to help you. It is a web address for Netgear wifi extender plan. Get best assistance from us to Netgear WiFi Extender Setup. We have get-together of express experts who can help you related to your solicitation.
    netgear support cost
    192.168.1.250
    netgear r6080
    netgear ex3700 setup wps
    Netgear WiFi Extender Setup
    mywifiextenders
    netgear router setup password
    mywifiext local
    netgearsupportcost

    ReplyDelete
  26. I like this post, And I figure that they having a great time to peruse this post, they might take a decent site to make an information, thanks for sharing it to 중국야동넷

    ReplyDelete
  27. Are you looking for Matlab Assignment Help? Our MATLAB assignment helper will provide you with increased value in your subjects to make your college days stress-free and give you enough time to study that will relieve you of the bulk of the assignments. You will definitely build an interest in MATLAB through our work.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Readers are always admiring informational blogs, and this is truly one of them. You did a great job. If you want to enhance writing skills, Sourceessay.com based assignment writer is the best solution for you. Online Assignment Help In London

    ReplyDelete
  29. Very useful and informative blog. Thank you so much for these kinds of informative blogs. write essays for students

    ReplyDelete
  30. Thank You for sharing an interesting blog post If you want to use WordPress for site design, seek a company that provides custom WordPress design services. we are leading with the best wordpress support.

    ReplyDelete
  31. আমি জানিনা আপনি আমার কথা বুঝছেন কিনা, কিন্ত এটি একটি অসাধারন পোষ্ট ছিল আমাদের ভালোবাসার পিকচার, ঈদের শুভেচ্ছা স্ট্যাটাস এই রকম ই করার চেষ্টা করেছি। আশা করি আপনাদেরও ভালো লাগবে। চাইলে দেখে আসতে পারেন।

    ReplyDelete
  32. খুব সুন্দর পোস্ট ছিল, যদি আপনাদের কারো শুভ সকাল এরএমএস পড়তে চান তাহলে এই লিঙ্কে ক্লিক করুন। ক্লিক করুন

    ReplyDelete
  33. Our experts in Finance Assignment Help are well-versed in all aspects of finance. You may count on us to help you with your online financial task. Our assignment experts can help you get started writing your documents. To accomplish the task on time, the authors work quickly.

    ReplyDelete
  34. This is again a great post by you. I'm a regular visitor of your website. Keep it up and keep sharing such posts.
    Many researcher says in their theory that even scholars also approach assignment experts as they find it difficult to complete their assignment on time.
    Subject where students mostly seek assignment help are Civil Engineering Assignment Help, CHCCCS023 answer key support, HR Assignment Help and etc.

    ReplyDelete
  35. How A Poem Happens: Robert Pinsky >>>>> Download Now

    >>>>> Download Full

    How A Poem Happens: Robert Pinsky >>>>> Download LINK

    >>>>> Download Now

    How A Poem Happens: Robert Pinsky >>>>> Download Full

    >>>>> Download LINK 6A

    ReplyDelete
  36. However, while using Google Play, users may face various issues. For example, you may get an error message 920, which is quite common in recent years..........................Google Bellen Nederland

    ReplyDelete
  37. Wow! Nice and informative blog you posted, really amazing. If someone asks me what do you like in this blog most then without hesitation I’ll say the words that you use in your blog, simple and amazing. Like you, I am also here to promote my assignment help website organically on digital platform. Basically we are from Santa Clara, California, USA and our website provides online educational help for the students. Please visit our assignment help website and let me know (Contact us page) If you think there is any issue in the website.

    ReplyDelete
  38. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  39. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Hello, this is very useful information. and beautiful words in this information that make us feel good while reading, thank you for sharing, and we hope you will continue to provide such information in the future.
    Youtube bellen nederland

    ReplyDelete
  41. Thanks for this amazing information and please keep writing on this type of topic. I will share this with my friends they will be happy to get this information. help in write my essay

    ReplyDelete
  42. I always receive the best Informetion from your site.
    So, I feel that your site is the best. I am waiting for new information from you. Recive bangladesh Birth Certificate Online Copy full informetion are here.

    ReplyDelete
  43. This website is very nice. I was looking for a site like this. Hopefully, it will be popular with people very soon. Probat Feri

    ReplyDelete
  44. This is an excellent message that you are providing through your post. I appreciated your work. paid thesis writers

    ReplyDelete
  45. I was tested Hsv positive and ever since then i have been taking different kinds of medicine but yet no improvement until i saw testimonies on the internet of how Robinson buckler has been curing different people from different kinds of diseases, immediately i contacted him. After our discussion he prepared the medicine and send it to me, which i received and took according to his instructions. Now my doctor just confirmed me HSV2 negative. My heart is so filled with joy, thank you so much Robinson buckler for curing me. If you are reading this and you are suffering from HSV or any other disease or you want to fix your broken marriage/relationship or maybe get back with your Ex husband, Ex wife, Boyfriend or girlfriend you can contact this Email address: [Robinson.buckler@yahoo.com....]

    Acne
    Addison’s
    Allergy
    Alzheimer’s
    Anxiety disorders
    Asthma
    Autism
    Back Pain
    Bell’s Palsy
    Bronchitis
    Callosities
    Cancer
    Cellulitis
    Athlete’s Foot
    Fibroid Tumor.
    Enlarge Prostate.
    Erectile Dysfunction….
    Arthritis.
    Get ex lover back.
    The Opioid Epidemic.
    Obesity.
    Infertility/Impotency.
    Eye Problem.
    Cold Sores
    Dandruff
    Dermatitis
    Eczema
    Genital Herpes
    Genital Warts
    Hair Loss
    Erectile dysfunction
    Hives – Chronic (urticaria)
    Impetigo
    Jock Itch
    Lice
    Medication refill
    Moles
    Nail Fungus
    Poison Ivy
    Post Treatment Concerns
    Psoriasis
    Ringworm
    Scabies
    Dermatitis
    Shingles (Herpes Zoster)
    Warts

    ReplyDelete
  46. اگرچه ممکن است خرید لباس مجلسی دخترانه در هر رنگ رنگین کمان وسوسه انگیز باشد، اما باید به خاطر داشت که کودکان اغلب پوست حساسی دارند. شما میخواهید مطمئن شوید که لباسهایی را انتخاب میکنید که با رنگها و مواد طبیعی ساخته شدهاند، زیرا کمتر باعث تحریک میشوند. آترین کیدز مزون تولید لباس های لوکس کودک

    ReplyDelete
  47. درمان شقاق با لیزر توسط فوق تخصص ناحیه مقعد و روده بزرگ
    https://darmanfori.com/fissure/

    ReplyDelete
  48. लोग अपनी थ्योरी में कहते हैं कि स्मार्ट उम्मीदवार भी सरकारी विभाग की नौकरियों की ओर रुख करते हैं। वे इस तर्क पर जोर देते हैं कि निजी क्षेत्र की तुलना में, सरकारी नौकरी वेतन के अलावा अन्य योजनाओं के माध्यम से अपने कर्मचारियों की बेहतर देखभाल करता है। अगर आप भी किसी वैकेंसी के लिए आवेदन करना चाहते हैं तो हमारी हिंदी जॉब लिस्टिंग साइट
    पर जरूर जाएं।

    ReplyDelete