Posts Tagged ‘poetry’

A Thank You Note

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…

Mere Horizon: The Form of Desire in John Keene’s Poetics

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 . ….

John Keene’s Keywording

*** “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…

Unembodied Blackness and Social Critique: John Keene’s Annotations

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

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

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…

On Being Stuck at Customs: The Poems of Solmaz Sharif

Solmaz, have you thanked your executioner today? — “Social Skills Training”1 These are the first questions I received after giving a virtual talk on my book Climate Lyricism: Aren’t the…

The Lover’s Complaint Concerning His Working Conditions

Heteropessimism is often understood as a female complaint. The idea that heterosexuality’s inequities and disappointments are borne disproportionately by women is so axiomatic that Jane Ward could reasonably dedicate The…