Is Poetry Masculine or Feminine?

[Doreen Peri]

pitiful non-apology

How about

Dear hester, judih, panta, westie, mousey1, izeveryboyin, sooZen, lucy, smileGRL, & all the other female poets –

I'm sorry I said your poetry SUCKS!

love,

Lightning Rod

.....

That might help.

.....

Cecil your poem was great! I love it! ha!

.....

mnaz, you really think this is an issue we could poll? There's more than ONE person here that might vote for "poetry is masculine, poetry written by men is superior, female poets write inferior verse"? I wonder who else but lightning rod would vote yes to that. Hmmm..

....

panta

in german, a poem is neuter.
poetry (whether translated as dichtung, or dichtkunst, or poesie) is female.

very interesting!

....

Lightning Rod, I know you wouldn't probably agree with the general public view that most male poets are gay but is this thread a way to counter that notion? Just curious.

heh

[mnaz]

Yes. Poetry is gender-specific. One side or another is going to win. Let's just leave it at that. Let's take a poll. I vote yes.

[Doreen Peri]

What do you mean poetry is gender specific? You mean you can tell whether a woman or a man wrote the poem? Or what exactly?

Or do you mean that the word.... "poetry".... is gender specific?

Or what? I don't get it.

[Lightning Rod]

What do you mean poetry is gender specific? You mean you can tell whether a woman or a man wrote the poem? Or what exactly?

Or do you mean that the word.... "poetry".... is gender specific?

Or what? I don't get it.

it's a strange thing, doreen
and I don't know how to explain it
but I can tell in three notes whether a flute player is a man or woman
something about the tone and enunciation

I can almost always tell whether a poet is a man or a woman just by reading their work. Don't ask me how. It's something to do with stance and attitude.

I don't think girl-poetry sucks. It's just different.
some of my favorite flute players are girls....they have the best lips in the band.

[mnaz]

At the end of the day,
when all is said and done,
and insert 5 other cliches here,
I meant to lampoon the idea (deadpan-style)
that poetry should be split up and disssected like this,
and tallied up and rendered "gender-specific".
I don't think poetry would be too happy with the concept.
But then, I'm lousy at deadpan-style "lampoon".
Sorry to be so unclear.

[Doreen Peri]

I wasn't talking to you Lightning Rod. I was talking to mnaz.

We already know what you think.

You're bigoted against women poets. Your remarks are sexist and make me really concerned that you are serious.

You've been very clear.

But I sure hope you really are just playing around trying to rile something up again. If you're serious about this, it's sad...

.....

Thanks, mnaz.... glad to know you were kidding.

[mnaz]

That's what I do.

I'm not kidding.

[Lightning Rod]

ok, doreen thinks that Lrod is a big sexist
we get that
we can debate that subject in the proper arena (sealy posturepedic)

[Doreen Peri]

I told you... I should have said your comments were sexist, not you. I took that back and have been saying your comments were sexist ever since I apologized.

We already debated it.

Nobody has agreed with you.

Read the thread.



I'm sure if anybody agrees with you, they'll let you know. But so far, nobody has agreed with you.

And I agree with hester that you owe all the women poets on this site an apology. A real one. You've put down our writing skills.

[emel.scott]

I'm a cross dresser, does it come through?

[Lightning Rod]

doreen, just getting me to say the word 'apologize' is a feat
what do you want me to do to make it 'real?'
should I don a hairshirt and smear myself with ashes?

oops, thats almost like cross-dressing, ain't it scott?

(as usual you are reading between the lines, the words and the letters too. I never said anybody's poetry 'sucked')

[Arcadia]

mmm... here poetry is feminine like moon, salt, sea, life, death, earth... maybe it´s not the point at all!

It´s a socio-cultural fact that most of the writers (poets included) in the university canons and more consensual literature history are men. I realized some years ago that most of my readings were written by men. It´s a challenge & interesting point realizing that!!!!!.
Now-now there are lot of poetisas and poetas, escritores y escritoras everywhere. That´s really good!!!!!!!

[mousey1]

I reckon you feel this way because the masculine voice is the voice that speaks to you most profoundly.
You can see the great swinging dick of literature wafting line to line. You fit right in.

Sure, you like pussy, perhaps a gentle voice whispering her sweet nothings
but they are means to your ends
there is no lasting morsel fit for your hungry man meal

I think poetry is for the gentle soul
who grips the pen as hard or soft as all that that day sends
and if you see, if what first hits you in the face
is tits and lower ball-less extremity
you're looking too hard
or not nearly hard enough

approach a poem as vehicle
jump in, take the wheel
and drive it off your very own cliff

back seat drivers
tend to miss the scenery
staring at maps and roads ahead

[mousey1]

Yeah, ya know, like hey man, mice are people too! How does one categorize them?

[Lightning Rod]

you delight me mousy one

I reckon you to be a libra
but I don't believe in astrology
but you are always so balanced