Hello Friends —
Welcome to National Poetry Month! For the past several years, I've enjoyed sending out one poem per day for the duration of the month and hearing your thoughts and responses to the different poems. All are welcome; no prior poetry experience is required — just send me an email if there's someone who'd like to be added to
the list.
Today's poem comes from the 19th century Canadian poet James McIntyre:
Ode on the Mammoth Cheese
Weighing over 7,000 pounds
We have seen thee, queen of cheese,
Lying quietly at your ease,
Gently fanned by evening breeze,
Thy fair form no flies dare seize.
All gaily dressed soon you'll go
To the great Provincial show,
To be admired by many a beau
In the city of Toronto.
Cows numerous as a swarm of bees,
Or as leaves upon the trees,
It did require to make thee please,
And stand unrivalled, queen of cheese.
May you not receive a scar as
We have heard that Mr. Harris
Intends to send you off as far as
The great world's show at Paris.
Of the youth beware of these,
For some of them might rudely squeeze
And bite your cheek, then songs or glees
We could not sing, oh! queen of cheese.
We'rt thou suspended from balloon,
You'd cast a shade even at noon,
Folks would think it was the moon
About to fall and crush them soon.
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Ok, so this poem is pretty funny. But it also raises some serious questions:
I came across this poem in a collection called Very Bad Poetry (1997), which begs the question, what makes a poem bad? or Bad? or Very Bad? Try to describe bad poetry without just using other adjectives (like 'cheesy'). If there were no such thing as bad poetry, could there still be such a thing as good poetry?
When is a poem so bad that it becomes good? What evidence tells you this poem is or is not bad on purpose? Does the author's intent matter in the ultimate determination
of Badness or Goodness? what about a century from now?
What does producing a collection of Very Bad Poetry say about the relationship
between readers/audience, writers, and the publishing industry?
Also, what does a gaily dressed cheese look like? Does anyone have a picture of one?
What kind of cheese repels insect life but attracts small children?
How far back in literature has there been in a mythical connection between cheese and the moon?
These and other pressing questions we will address as Poetry Month unfolds.
As always, you can learn more about National Poetry Month at www.poets.org, the website of the Academy of American Poets.
Cheers,
Ellen
Labels: NPM