Yeah, while there are some phrases that can seem a bit old fashioned, I'm impressed with how these still land today.
I left you that other comment today too, but I'm curious on your feelings about translation efforts. Because for me, it's been a very empathic experience. I have not really been inside someone's head so-to-speak like this before.
I'm not quite sure how to describe it really other than it's been a very powerful and almost intimate ordeal.
Ordeal is the right word, but it's a rewarding one.
In some way it is the ultimate form of reading. It forces you to read painstakingly closely and to contextualize in more than one way. An empathetic experience for sure.
Yeah, glad you said that. I think it's possible to have high, naive goals. I believe in love between people. I think I share that with my wife and kids, it's possible. But it's hard and for most people it doesn't work out.
I think peace is similar, it's a kind of love. And it should be the goal. And I'm starting to think that what antiwar poetry can do, is maybe not end the wars. I'm not sure it worked for Vietnam or Iraq. But it hold a candle up to hate. A hate that develops through propaganda and manipulation even.
War may always be inevitable but people still get married despite the statistics in divorce. So it's worthy to try.
At least, this is where I'm at with this feeling at the moment.
Martin, I started but didn't finish my reply. Yea, that opener seem to strike a few people I think you are correct, I don't think we will be without rage. And despite my antiwar views, I'm sadly confident there will always be war. I also think there will be always be love despite the war.
So then what is the purpose of antiwar poetry? I was commenting this to Daniel as well. I think it can be very focused of course -- stop this specific war. This is what POH is doing here.
But I think it perhaps is also a way of turning rage back into calm. After 9/11 there was almost unified support for revenge. The first 9 months of Afghanistan was a limited special operations mission. But then the rage continued, people will killed, and there were new people to avenge. And now, well, lets add Iraq.
It will happen again in my lifetime. American troops will be sent, with good intentions, to fight. A new generation will want to fight in "their" war to prove themselves and a new generation will then be left wondering how to feel about what they saw.
So hopefully people find a Robert Bly poem, an anitwar song, a Studio Ghibli movie, or some piece of art that helps them process these feelings of turning rage back into peace. But without these things, the road to recovery is very long and painful and often has a bleak ending.
This one really hit home. My favorite so far.
Yeah, while there are some phrases that can seem a bit old fashioned, I'm impressed with how these still land today.
I left you that other comment today too, but I'm curious on your feelings about translation efforts. Because for me, it's been a very empathic experience. I have not really been inside someone's head so-to-speak like this before.
I'm not quite sure how to describe it really other than it's been a very powerful and almost intimate ordeal.
Ordeal is the right word, but it's a rewarding one.
In some way it is the ultimate form of reading. It forces you to read painstakingly closely and to contextualize in more than one way. An empathetic experience for sure.
This one really gets me wondering if peace is possible. I sure hope it is
Yeah, glad you said that. I think it's possible to have high, naive goals. I believe in love between people. I think I share that with my wife and kids, it's possible. But it's hard and for most people it doesn't work out.
I think peace is similar, it's a kind of love. And it should be the goal. And I'm starting to think that what antiwar poetry can do, is maybe not end the wars. I'm not sure it worked for Vietnam or Iraq. But it hold a candle up to hate. A hate that develops through propaganda and manipulation even.
War may always be inevitable but people still get married despite the statistics in divorce. So it's worthy to try.
At least, this is where I'm at with this feeling at the moment.
Josh, I am loving the series.
I wanna focus on the opening stanza tonight:
And when this hellish rage
descends back to the deep,
will there really be a truce?
When I read it I began to wonder if man is the cause for war - or if it's something more innate for life in general.
If all rage were quelled then we would be incomplete. If only rage could be expressed in ways that did not require warfare.
The analysis made me think of Slaughterhouse 5 - like writing an anti glacier book, which, with global warming and all kind of looses its meaning! lol
Anywhoooos - hope all is good over there for you Josh!
Martin, I started but didn't finish my reply. Yea, that opener seem to strike a few people I think you are correct, I don't think we will be without rage. And despite my antiwar views, I'm sadly confident there will always be war. I also think there will be always be love despite the war.
So then what is the purpose of antiwar poetry? I was commenting this to Daniel as well. I think it can be very focused of course -- stop this specific war. This is what POH is doing here.
But I think it perhaps is also a way of turning rage back into calm. After 9/11 there was almost unified support for revenge. The first 9 months of Afghanistan was a limited special operations mission. But then the rage continued, people will killed, and there were new people to avenge. And now, well, lets add Iraq.
It will happen again in my lifetime. American troops will be sent, with good intentions, to fight. A new generation will want to fight in "their" war to prove themselves and a new generation will then be left wondering how to feel about what they saw.
So hopefully people find a Robert Bly poem, an anitwar song, a Studio Ghibli movie, or some piece of art that helps them process these feelings of turning rage back into peace. But without these things, the road to recovery is very long and painful and often has a bleak ending.
Josh! What a reply! Thank you so much for taking the time to write this out.
The need of anti war poetry fills the purpose. To let people know they are not alone in their emotions - that they are loved.
Rage as fuel for wars is scary to think about - the machine will never run out of fuel. If only it were something that could run out!
It is a good reminder that people, to the most part, are well intending. A good reminder indeed.
The ending got me. Made me chuckle. As I was reading it I thought of, “why don’t you fly a kite or something?”
Thank you again Josh!
Yeah, as the other comment notes. This one is up there as one of my favorites so far.