The Consequence of Innovation: 21st Century Poetics by (April 1, 2008) Paperback

by Craig Dworkin

Literary Nonfiction. Criticism & Theory. Poetics. Dworkin has edited a collection of amazing new essays on poetics, summarizing the variety of poetries that have arisen in innovative writing during the past 10 years. Filling the gap that has arisen in publishing writing on new poetry, there are essays on computer programs as poems by Brian Kim Stefans, flarf poetics by Gary Sullivan and Michael Gottlieb, uncreative poetry by Kenneth Goldsmith, and environmental poetry by James Sherry. There are essays on playwright Fiona Templeton and a groundbreaking piece by Sianne Ngai centered on Gertrude Stein. There is also an important group of general essays on the poetry marketplace by Steve Evans, Charles Bernstein, and Marjorie Perloff. If you buy one book this year, or next year, or the year after, buy this one.

Genres: Poetry

Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Maria AC · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5
Una lectura interesante para aprender sobre poesía contemporánea. Como todas las compilaciones, tiene algunos textos más interesantes que otros.

[Leif · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read only a scattering of these essays, but what I did read was immediate, practical, political and technically adept, not to mention well versed in theoretical poetics and recent history, to say nothing of the broad span of American poetry and publishing practices. So, you know, that's all pretty good. Marjorie Perloff is a significant contributor, as is Charles Bernstein and many other luminaries of American poetics. Worth a look, a few hours of your time surely.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely required reading for a lucid and invested understanding of the contemporary situation of poetry. "Poetic innovations are often noisy, messy, disruptive, disorienting: they do not form a neat line with the innovations of the past but often seem to swerve from a progressivist course. This may be because they are re-conceiving not only the nature of the poem but reconstituting the audience for the poem, reevaluating the contexts that give the poem not only its meaning but its social force."

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I admit to feeling off-put by a collection of essays without an expository, near-explicit introduction. But, of course, I shouldn't have expected that here; actually, Craig Dworkin's "Seja Marginal" essay is a nice opening because it does open the anthology up for a wide range of topics and views toward contemporary poetics.

Was impressed by the sincere or generous tone of many of these critical essays, even when I didn't totally agree on the points. If you're interested in any kind of or questions of recent innovation in poetry, go for it.

[Chad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book of essays so far this year. I've read them all a few times now. A lot of wisdom and provocative material covering a large spectrum of the contemporary poetics scene. Hits on everything from the politics of Official Verse Culture, to the realities of the poetry reading/writing community, and that's in addition to the great work on Stein, computer poetry, flarf, etc. It's a bit pricey, but totally worth it.