Litwit Lounge discussion

Thought you might like to know about this, although you probably already do.
Alice Shapiro
Poet's Tongue
"The Power of Poetic Speaking"


oh, the link didn't travel, will try again! sigh.....Edgar Allan Poe

Subject: Article sent from ksl.com

I thought you might be interested in this article on ksl.com.
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=156&sid=8...

Alice, thanks for that link; those observances would be interesting to attend! Poe is one of my favorite authors, so it's nice to see him getting some of the recognition that he deserves.

Werner wrote: "Alice, thanks for that link; those observances would be interesting to attend! Poe is one of my favorite authors, so it's nice to see him getting some of the recognition that he deserves."

You are sure up late. I would love to go to that also. He was such a genius. Its amazing how often they do not get proper recognition in their lifetime. He is also a fav of mine and I joined all Poe groups ...there are 3 of them.

One of my most cherished books is a beautifully leather-bound edition of Poe's complete works which belonged to my great-grandfather. I think Poe was my first-ever "horror" writer.

Mary wrote: "One of my most cherished books is a beautifully leather-bound edition of Poe's complete works which belonged to my great-grandfather. I think Poe was my first-ever "horror" writer."

How wonderful to have a book like that. I have a complete works too but its not super nice like that. It has a raven on the front and of course my fav poem is The Raven. I memorized 100 lines of it in high school when we had to memorize 100 lines of any poem. I was so glad it was our choice.

I haven't read any Poe in quite some time, but "The Raven" is part of my brain.
When I was in Baltimore, I made sure to stop by his grave.

Callista wrote: "I haven't read any Poe in quite some time, but "The Raven" is part of my brain.
When I was in Baltimore, I made sure to stop by his grave."

Wish I had. There is an amusing comment (poem about a kitty) if you search for Poe's the Raven on the neverending quiz. You can type up search and it should come up then look down at comments.

When I say Poe is one of my favorite authors, I'm thinking mostly of his fiction. Of course, I read more fiction than poetry; but there's actually a lot of good poetry that I enjoy. Most of Poe's poetry, for me, doesn't fall in that category; it's some of the worst and most tediously overblown Romantic- style verse ever penned. I read mostly on my exercise bicycle; trying to read all of Poe's poetry once, I nearly fell asleep and almost fell off the bike! (I quit after that. :-))

That said, when Poe as poet is at his best --when he actually has something worthwhile to say, and a clear emotional effect in mind to achieve through saying it-- he produced some of the greatest poetry in the English language. Whether it's a long or a short poem, every word is crafted to contribute to the whole, and both the thought and the beauty of the words stay with you forever. If writing all the poetic drivel he did was what it took to come up with these gems as part of the mix, the time and paper was well worth it! And of all of the gleaming gems, I agree that "The Raven" is tops.

Okay--note to self: never try to read Poe-poetry while on an exercise bike. Could be painful. (I had a sudden reminder of how ridiculous "The Bells" is.)
Canary's kitty remark reminds me--my friend's wife had a cat named Lenore. My friend was a little impressed when I said, "As in, 'the lost Lenore'?"

Werner wrote: "When I say Poe is one of my favorite authors, I'm thinking mostly of his fiction. Of course, I read more fiction than poetry; but there's actually a lot of good poetry that I enjoy. Most of Poe's..."


I like Poe's poetry because of the rhythm. Its my favorite thing about him. Last night I tried to read some of his funny satire but didn't enjoy it. Its probably something to do with the politics of the his time of which I know nothing. It was also too rambling. I like it when writers get to the point which takes so many a hundred years especially the Russian ones. My husband says women are the ones who can't get to the point and take half a year but I find just as many men who have the same problem.

I particularly like The Bells! I seem to really hear bells ringing in a city when I read it silently to myself. However, I also love the music Tubular Bells. We are all different!

Yes, I agree Werner! The Raven is purely the BEST thing ever written as far as poetry goes. Its simply genius. That is why in high school I chose it to memorize 100 lines of it.

I love church bells too! Do you love church bells? My mother hates them but she once had to live across the street from a church that played them constantly.

Too much repetition in "The Bells" poem for me, sorry.
Depends on the church bell. Some are lovely, some not--and it would definitely depend on how often I had to hear them.

"The Bells" was actually one of the Poe poems that I liked (though I haven't read it since high school --or was it junior college?). It isn't philosophically deep, and as Callista said, it does have a lot of repetition. But repetition can have a poetic quality; Poe mixes it with variation to highlight both similarity and difference, and he makes good use of onomatopoeia here, too (as he often does in his best work). I felt that the poem was just a good tribute to some of the beauty and fascination that can be found in the details of daily life, if we just pay attention. (Of course, it doesn't exactly reflect daily life today --for instance, we don't typically get to hear sleigh bells any more, and church bells are pretty rare as well.)

So we'll agree to disagree. Which of Poe's poems do you think is the worst, Werner?

I liked his poem with the woman's name which I of course can't remember. Guess I'll have to look it up.

Got it - Lenore

Callista, sorry to have taken so long to answer your question! I didn't memorize the titles of the poems I didn't like, so couldn't answer without looking at the book I was reading in to encounter them; that's a library book from the college library where I work, and I'm off on Fridays and Saturdays.

If memory serves, the poem I nearly fell off the bike while reading was "Stanzas" (1827). It's not very long -but it definitely feels longer. :-) But he wrote several other very opaque, ponderous poems as well! Of course, since the collection I was reading was chronologically arranged, it's quite possible that his poetic artistry improved greatly over time. If that's the case, the concentrated dose of drivel I got would simply reflect the fact that those were early, immature works done before he hit his stride.

No worries about the delay, Werner. I don't expect instant replies. We all have other things to do.

Thank you!

I remember alot of my classmates had to recite Annabelle Lee. My favorite story is a story about revenge very good story but I can't remember the title ,If someone else does please let me know! www.bookaddict4real.com

Cheryl, can you give us a few more specific details about the story? The first one dealing with revenge that comes to mind for me is "The Cask of Amontillado." If the story you're thinking of is one where the victim is walled up in a niche down in a subterranean crypt and left to suffocate and rot, that's the one!

Werner wrote: "Cheryl, can you give us a few more specific details about the story? The first one dealing with revenge that comes to mind for me is "The Cask of Amontillado." If the story you're thinking of is o..."

Thank you I couldn't remember that to save my life yes
that's the story!

You're welcome, Cheryl! Glad I could help.

Charly, Poe died in 1849. So he's actually been gone 160 years this week. :-)