Does He or Doesn’t He?

July 28, 2005

I can’t tell from Ron’s hot post whether or not he actually likes Jack Gilbert’s work. Views of Jeopardy may well have vaulted into first place on my list of all-time favorite volumes of poetry. Unfortunately, Ron’s take on Auden is pretty clear and that’s dominating the conversation over there.

I’ve been meaning to write about Gilbert, but I really don’t know how to put into words the effect his poems (especially the early ones) have on me. Somehow what I want to say is all bound up in some of the same things Kasey has been talking about when it comes to the disposability and durability of poetry in our aesthetics. I’m still mulling it over.

Tags: Poetry and Poetics