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Poetry Analysis for Enthusiasts

This document provides biographical information about poet Matthew Dickman and analyzes his poem "Slow Dance". It discusses Dickman's influences, including Anne Sexton, Frank O'Hara, and Allen Ginsberg. It describes the form and architecture of "Slow Dance", including its free verse style with short sentences and metaphorical language. The document also examines how literary theorist Terry Eagleton's ideas about form and meaning can help in understanding Dickman's poem.

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722 views11 pages

Poetry Analysis for Enthusiasts

This document provides biographical information about poet Matthew Dickman and analyzes his poem "Slow Dance". It discusses Dickman's influences, including Anne Sexton, Frank O'Hara, and Allen Ginsberg. It describes the form and architecture of "Slow Dance", including its free verse style with short sentences and metaphorical language. The document also examines how literary theorist Terry Eagleton's ideas about form and meaning can help in understanding Dickman's poem.

Uploaded by

cestlamour
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Slow Dance

By: Matthew Dickman

Biography
Born August 20, 1975 in Portland, Oregon Earned an MFA from University of Texas Works with his twin brother who is also a poet but they have very different styles Started writing poems in sophomore year of high school First full-length collection, All American Poem, won the 2008 American Poetry Honickman First Book Prize in Poetry Author of 2 chapbooks and 2 full-length poetry collections

Influences
Deeply influenced by Anne Sexton after finding her To Bedlam and Part Way Back in the library Later on influenced by Koch and OHara Mostly fascinated about the fact that a poem can be written about anything Encountered Allen Ginsberg at a book signing and exchanged information and poetry

All-American Poem
Attempt to find the capacity of the metaphorical human heart Include everything he can into the poems: love, sex, loneliness, etc. All poems have the same form: single block stanza with varying sentence lengths across line breaks that control the momentum of the poem and allow the sentences to roll

Poetry Everywhere: Slow Dance by Matthew Dickman


http://www.youtube.com/watch ?v=TG0F2a3sw14

Architecture of the Poem


Free verse like those of Walt Whitman and Frank OHara Similes and metaphors throughout the poem Series of very short sentences The most figurative language in the last four lines of the poem: almond grove, haiku and honey, and orange and orangutan slow dance Use of simple words

Reasons Behind the Architecture


Make associational implications using denotative meaning of words
Ex: yogurt and yoga = the relationship between 2 strangers

Repetitions of the phrase slow dance occur without specific patterns but to bring the readers the objective of the poem

Reasons Behind the Architecture (cont.)


Uses of ordinary/ non-complex words keep the poem simple and honest like how life is supposed to be, a possible message from the poet

Deciphering Form with Eagleton


Slow Dance
Different sentence lengths across line breaks Series of short sentences

Eagleton
Pace (Ch 5.4) seamlessly flowing pace of the poem like a slow dance Short pauses like the pauses and rotations during a dance Act as transitions to another idea

Deciphering Form with Eagleton (cont.)


Slow Dance
Alliteration and metaphor
Ex: haiku and honey

Eagleton
If two words are associated by their sound [], this will also tend to yoke their meanings together; but it may also highlight their differences of meaning [] (Ch3.3 pg57)

A poetic text is rich in information because each of its elements [] is located at the intersection of several overlaid systems (Ch 3.3, pg 57)

Citations
http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/2213 http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/matthew-dickman http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/04/06/090406fa_fa ct_mead http://howapoemhappens.blogspot.com/2010/05/matthewdickman.html http://www.zyzzyva.org/2011/05/23/a-fight-against-themeanness-in-this-world-qa-with-matthew-dickman/ http://toastedbear.blogspot.com/2011/06/matthew-dickmanis-poet-that-writes-in.html

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