Thursday, April 14, 2011
On Not Getting Elizabeth Bishop
On Not Getting Elizabeth Bishop
I know,
she was a lesbian
and exalted,
and surrounded
by words like “stunning”
and “brilliant”
and “immaculate usage,”
so what is it
that slams the door
in my face
each time
I try to read her.
I think it is her own face
I like best--
sensuous,
round,
like so many
I have known--
they too were
lesbians,
only they didn’t
write poetry.
Yes, I think,
it would be nice
to know her,
or if not that,
at least to be part
of her crowd--
cutting below
all the New Yorker
sophistication,
the cocktail parties,
lunching with the editors,
just to have a few moments
together, maybe hold
hands a bit,
a goodbye kiss.
Yes, I know,
I should take solace
from her verses.
But what should be
rich and juicy
always comes out dry
and a bit too crisp,
as if the words themselves
were afraid
of revealing
who they are,
as if they were made
by some language
machine
and not begotten
in the ordinary moist
human way.
Dorothy Walters
April 14, 2011
Elizabeth Bishop was one of the most acclaimed poets of the last century. I have tried many times over the years to read her verses, but somehow fail to grasp her full impact--so obviously I am missing something.
