Today (25 October) I feel in the mood to knock out a few preliminary thoughts about Gregory Vincent St. Thomasino’s “Skips.”  Eventually I’ll try to work in some of his terms.  Right now, I’ll just go with first thoughts–well first attempts at analysis after having read the poem several times.  I’ll re-post the poem, with my comments interrupting it.

               Skips

               one bus,
               said of certain places

Here’s the first skip: “one bus” will not strike many readers as being something likely to be “said of certain places.” But it can make sense for places isolated so having only one bus in and out each day (or week?). In any case, an image of a bus stop entered my mind.

               which may, at sites, be
               or, for such as certain sites

26 October: At this point we can be sure we’re in what I call a syntax poem, which is a kind of language poem (in my poetics).   A syntax poem, to put it simply, a poem whose syntax is goofy.  Gregory, I’m sure, has a different name for it. “Logoclastic poem,” I think may be it. A terrific word (like so many of my neologies are, but suffering, like them, from being too idiosyncratic). Gregory would also consider his poem “cubistic,” which it can’t be, for what an artwork becomes cubistic mainly by showing a scene from two or more angles simultaneously, which words can’t do.  Gregory is probably presenting his scene like Stein presented many of hers, with fractional objective and subjective (often, to my taste, too subjective) descriptions repeated many times in varied form.   A kind of Jamesian hesitancy to be direct.  When effective–as here, I believe–it can make a commonplace scene take on enough obscurity to allow the reader the eventual joy of solving it.  Or coming close enough to doing that.

               a, saying, or, for standing
               a, may be holding places

I still feel like I’m at a bus stop, or maybe even in a bus station.  But, helped by later sections I’ve now read more than once, I find the poem discussing language, too.  One reason for that is that so many of these kinds of poems do just that.  But “saying” is what language does, as well as a word (or close to a word) for “so to speak.”  Using words or phrases in this double way is, of course, a primary activity of poets, but language poets tend to be more interested in doing it than other poets–enough to warp their poems’ syntax to help them do it.

At this juncture I’m taking a break until tomorrow.   Hey, I could say more, but I think I’ve given you students enough to think about for this session!  (Note: I can’t resist putting in another plug for the value of close readings–I find it as much fun to discover something in someone else’s poem, which I feel I’ve done here [for myself, at any rate], as it is suddenly to discover something I can use in a poem of my own that I’m working on.  I really feel sorry for those who can’t appreciate close readings.)

               and doubtless other combinations
               one bus.

               and if it is but agreeable
               a hand or glove or calendar

               as, he was
               but not in certain places

               which, when sounding
               just above, and, sounding just above

               are gone, or, for some time
               by rote or involuntary action

               between highest and lowest
               is present, and absent, is gone and when

               that aspect, to be events
               alike, in which they are alike

               between highest and lowest
               the features

               perceived or thought about
               seem suddenly, to fit

               also spelled insight or solution
               the use of, or, as means his present station

               and doubtless other combinations
               which are themselves

               his means
               the skin, the hair, the coat

               are fairly, then, it matches, either of the two
               in which, unfit variations

               are discarded
               are held at mutual right angles, say

               as when a new hat
               or sometimes used as synonyms

               is part
               or,

               as a rule, a new hat
               is considered of involuntary action

               or,
               in respect to suspended judgment

               in which, a measure of degree
               they are, so alike

               being highest, possible highest
               the skin, the hair, the coat

               an irrepressible action
               or

               due to lips
               and doubtless other combinations

               attained by involuntary action
               as when a new hat is considered part

               of one’s coat
               or rival, or station

.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 26th, 2011 at 12:00 AM and is filed under Close Reading, Poetic Practice, Poetics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.