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Sing in Me, Rational Muse!

Sing in Me, Rational Muse! Plato’s “descriptions of poetic inspiration occur over a long period of time, ranging from his earliest works to his latest, and there is considerable uniformity in what he says.  Throughout P.’s work the mental state of the inspired poet is...

Stunned, Stung with Esthetic Tears

Stunned, Stung with Esthetic Tears “When it reaches Alexandria, poetry comes in out of the sun, retires to the library . . .  And so it [poetry] survives in a world where the vulgar tongue is not Greek.” ~ Michael Schmidt, The First Poets, 19 At Florida Technological...

Crippled Poets

          Crippled Poets Among the earliest of lines to spring And linger utterly till now are long Ones drawn from blinded eyes.  The verses sing Like prophets’ spirits which must see.  A song Of guts, the gods, and marrow-spills came out From manly depths behind the...

Crippled Poets

        Crippled Poets Among the earliest of lines to spring And linger utterly till now are long Ones drawn from blinded eyes.  The verses sing Like prophets’ spirits which must see.  A song Of guts, the gods, and marrow-spills came out From manly depths behind the...

Virgins in Self-sacrificial Auto da Fé

Virgins in Self-sacrificial Auto da Fé Modern poetry  modern verse  contemporary poetry  contemporary verse modern poem contemporary poem John Keats on his deathbed. ~Joseph Severn “His ‘magic’ does not take account of what cannot be known.”* His beauty does not care...

The Bones of Orpheus, the Hair of Keats

The Bones of Orpheus, the Hair of Keats Modern poetry  modern verse  contemporary poetry  contemporary verse  modern poem  contemporary poem If we collected poets’ body parts And put them in glass cases, would the world Adore them there like saints? Pickled hearts Of...