Dear John, I’ve been reading “Ten Things I Do Every Day” every day. “Now I don’t know anything anymore.” What does sacred, ordinary protocol have to do with knowing anything…
Posts Tagged ‘poetics’
Mere Horizon: The Form of Desire in John Keene’s Poetics
10.06.23
I. “Dark to Themselves,” the eponymous poem of the sixth section of John Keene’s Punks, begins with a command, which also serves as an ars poetica:”Invent, experiment: chaos . ….
Passagens Estranhas: Translating the Obscene with Hilda Hilst and John Keene
10.06.23
“Oh, how delicious and practical it is that people think us strange . . . ” — Hilda Hilst, Letters from a Seducer, translated by John Keene At the outset…
John Keene’s Keywording
10.06.23
*** “In the mark event, you enter your signature.” So begins Seismosis, John Keene’s 2006 book of poetry, published as a collaboration with the artist Christopher Stackhouse. The quoted line…
The Black Experimental Impulse: Returning to Seismosis
10.06.23
A student in my recent “Twenty-First Century African American Literature” seminar insisted, “We should stop using the phrase ‘Experimental Literature.’ All creative writing is an experiment.” This is true, but…
Unembodied Blackness and Social Critique: John Keene’s Annotations
10.06.23
One of the most remarkable features of John Keene’s thoroughly remarkable 1995 publication Annotations is that it manages to register as a distinctly African American work without even attempting to…
“A Leap into the Void”: A Conversation with John Keene
10.06.23
This interview took place over Zoom on January 26, 2023. It has been edited for clarity. BME: I wanted to start by talking about your generosity — as an artist,…
Sui Generis: On the Genius of John Keene
10.06.23
Those times when I stareat the blank white screen or pageI may despair that I cannot showor testify how much I love blackpeople and want other black peopleand all people…