There’s a
new Upworthy clip; a father wrote and performed a poem for his son. His son has
down-syndrome. The word he mentions, against which he speaks is retarded. The
poem’s literary quality is wanting, but his eyes tell the of the desire; that’s
what kept me listening.
I’m a little
critical of such videos. Just say what you mean. The verse is convoluted. It
gets in the way of the message, an important message, and is not well written
or performed.
I love
poetry. The beat poetry movement is really something; for me, it’s mostly a
reminder of the verbal side of poetry, of the part after writing, the part I
like to ignore, the performance. The beat movement takes a submerged topic and
blends it with a head snapping style that is culturally appealing. It is
exciting. It is passionate.
Do I enjoy
the beat poetry? It’s okay.
But it seems
forced. Angry sometimes. Too fast. The tones often disagree with the subject
matter. But perhaps the escalating emotion is what has kept it living and
growing through the 20teens. The mellow is drowned out by the dramatic. The
generation tiring of the jaded postmodernism latches to open emotion, latches
to those who say “fuck it” as a rallying cry rather than a sigh of cynicism.
It’s hip. Hipsters are gradually handing it over to pop culture. (Says I.)
My
generation’s pull for openness is frazzling for one who paired well with the skeptical,
jaded mode of being. Of course, there is a balance to be found; the beat poets
make me think of the pendulum metaphor, with Annie-on-Autopilot on the other
side: why the hell would anyone want to “embrace their emotions” and unfurl
them for the world??
My counselor, Reagan once said, “I’m going to go religious on you. Jesus got ticked in the
temple. If the Son of God can get pissed, I think it’s probably okay for you to
feel anger.” Okay, okay. Perhaps beat poetry is something people find to be an
expression of righteous anger. (However, I think the poets could take some
lessons from Eminem on breathing while keeping the desired emotion palpable.)
As for the
subject matter—keep at it. Father of the wonderful son who happens to have
down-syndrome, don’t stop.
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