in response to the slam poetry debate

[black-dawning.livejournal.com]

I posted this Buddy Wakefield clip as a comment, but I think it deserves its own entry. Buddy Wakefield is a great slam poet. Does that mean great rant and nonsense? See for yourself.

"Flockprinter" by Buddy Wakefield

Comments

[claymedeiros.livejournal.com]

Poetry has always had various ways of getting it done. Once there was printing, getting it done could just be words on a page, but only some words were great poetry. For the thousands of years before that, it was performance and it is good that slam is out there to remind us about the performing part so that we do not limit the art of poetry from all of its possibilities. But like the printed word, only some slam is great poetry.

Poetry is not about either protecting or ignoring the canon. It is about seeing the past great poets and current great poets as just that regardless of the form. Poetry will not be constrained and some of today's work will go on and some of it will not go on whether it is written or filmed or carved in stone tablets.

[aria-muse.livejournal.com]

Well said.