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The Silent Partner
Book by Williamson, Greg
- GenresPoetry
88 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 2, 2015
"So too with language, so even with this verse,
From a pool of syllables, words hover
With rich potential, then spill across the lip
And riffle down the page, for better or worse,
Making their chancy trip,
Becoming sentences as they discover
(Now flowing, now seeming to stammer)
Their English channels, trickling over
The periodic pauses of its grammar." --from "Waterfall"
Having read Williamson's later Errors in the Script: Sewanee Writers Conference Series, this book was quite clearly a first collection. While Williamson has all the intelligence and wit and wisdom he puts to such fabulous use in Errors in the Script, his command of words and the craft of poetry is less developed in this collection. Williamson is a poet who is very fond of form; many of the poems in Errors are rhyming and metrical, and it is in that book that his famous (or at least "poetry-famous") "Double Exposures" really come to light. Every piece in this book, with the possible exception of "Monk's Work"--a beautiful concrete poem whose text does contain shades of rhyme and meter--and the later two sections of "Three Manuals", is rigidly metrical and regularly rhyming. He uses a wide variety of meters and rhyme schemes, with some poems being in smooth iambic trimeter and others in idiosyncratic Sapphics (or similar stanzas)and with poems in heroic couplets, terza rima, and complicated internal rhyme-scheme-knots. This variety is impressive, but he seems to be still getting the hang of meter in these poems. His choices regarding meter and rhyme are often (but not always) seemingly random, and in many places the meter seems forced, although he never goes quite so far as to make the content a slave to the form.
Despite a few weak or forced poems, there are also poems of remarkable interest and beauty. I loved "Walter Parmer"--"Playing along,performing in their turn,/While embers fell like autumn, red and gold,/Because the game goes on though buildings burn."--, "Monk's Work", "Three Manuals", "Waterfall" and "Bradley Woodhouse" and found other pieces that were highly skilled and worthwhile poems. I didn't like "Italics, Mine" or "On the International Date Line" but those were personal (the first seemed pointless and the second dull), not poetic, problems. Although these poems are obviously from the beginning of Williamson's career they make for a worthwhile collection and a marker of a fantastic, if at the time of this book, undeveloped talent.
From a pool of syllables, words hover
With rich potential, then spill across the lip
And riffle down the page, for better or worse,
Making their chancy trip,
Becoming sentences as they discover
(Now flowing, now seeming to stammer)
Their English channels, trickling over
The periodic pauses of its grammar." --from "Waterfall"
Having read Williamson's later Errors in the Script: Sewanee Writers Conference Series, this book was quite clearly a first collection. While Williamson has all the intelligence and wit and wisdom he puts to such fabulous use in Errors in the Script, his command of words and the craft of poetry is less developed in this collection. Williamson is a poet who is very fond of form; many of the poems in Errors are rhyming and metrical, and it is in that book that his famous (or at least "poetry-famous") "Double Exposures" really come to light. Every piece in this book, with the possible exception of "Monk's Work"--a beautiful concrete poem whose text does contain shades of rhyme and meter--and the later two sections of "Three Manuals", is rigidly metrical and regularly rhyming. He uses a wide variety of meters and rhyme schemes, with some poems being in smooth iambic trimeter and others in idiosyncratic Sapphics (or similar stanzas)and with poems in heroic couplets, terza rima, and complicated internal rhyme-scheme-knots. This variety is impressive, but he seems to be still getting the hang of meter in these poems. His choices regarding meter and rhyme are often (but not always) seemingly random, and in many places the meter seems forced, although he never goes quite so far as to make the content a slave to the form.
Despite a few weak or forced poems, there are also poems of remarkable interest and beauty. I loved "Walter Parmer"--"Playing along,performing in their turn,/While embers fell like autumn, red and gold,/Because the game goes on though buildings burn."--, "Monk's Work", "Three Manuals", "Waterfall" and "Bradley Woodhouse" and found other pieces that were highly skilled and worthwhile poems. I didn't like "Italics, Mine" or "On the International Date Line" but those were personal (the first seemed pointless and the second dull), not poetic, problems. Although these poems are obviously from the beginning of Williamson's career they make for a worthwhile collection and a marker of a fantastic, if at the time of this book, undeveloped talent.
December 23, 2024
The accusation that Williamson's meters sometimes feel random overlooks the way his formal experimentation mirrors the thematic complexity of his poems. The (less than occasional) irregularity in his metrical patterns serves not as a flaw, but as a conscious artistic choice that captures the organic, sometimes chaotic nature of language and thought.
The use of heroic couplets, terza rima, and even intricate internal rhyme patterns showcases a poet testing the bounds of traditional forms, much like a painter experimenting with color and texture. To critique this as randomness is to mistake artistic boldness for lack of control. While it is true that some of the lines in The Silent Partner might feel constrained by their formal structure, this is an inherent challenge of metrical poetry and one that Williamson generally handles with remarkable skill. The moments where form appears to strain under the weight of language are, arguably, moments of productive tension. They draw the reader's attention to the interplay between form and meaning, encouraging a more active engagement with the text.
As a debut collection, The Silent Partner should be celebrated for its ambition and achievements rather than overly scrutinized for occasional imperfections. Critics who compare it to Williamson’s later works, such as Errors in the Script, risk holding it to an unfair standard. While his later poetry may exhibit greater technical polish, the foundation of his talent—his wit, intelligence, and formal daring—is abundantly clear in this volume.
The use of heroic couplets, terza rima, and even intricate internal rhyme patterns showcases a poet testing the bounds of traditional forms, much like a painter experimenting with color and texture. To critique this as randomness is to mistake artistic boldness for lack of control. While it is true that some of the lines in The Silent Partner might feel constrained by their formal structure, this is an inherent challenge of metrical poetry and one that Williamson generally handles with remarkable skill. The moments where form appears to strain under the weight of language are, arguably, moments of productive tension. They draw the reader's attention to the interplay between form and meaning, encouraging a more active engagement with the text.
As a debut collection, The Silent Partner should be celebrated for its ambition and achievements rather than overly scrutinized for occasional imperfections. Critics who compare it to Williamson’s later works, such as Errors in the Script, risk holding it to an unfair standard. While his later poetry may exhibit greater technical polish, the foundation of his talent—his wit, intelligence, and formal daring—is abundantly clear in this volume.
August 10, 2018
Greg Williamson's "The Silent Partner" is an extraordinarily accomplished first book. It's thoughtful, smart, surprising, and beautifully crafted — an underrated gem. The rhyme and meter is handled, contrary to what an earlier reviewer says, with a light and sure touch. I'd be hard-pressed to think of anyone who does it better. It's a stunning book.
I haven't read Williamson's other volumes, and I don't know how he escaped my attention for so long. I'm starting "Errors in the Script" right now, and will be buying anything else of his that I can find.
I haven't read Williamson's other volumes, and I don't know how he escaped my attention for so long. I'm starting "Errors in the Script" right now, and will be buying anything else of his that I can find.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews