Poetry and Empire: Post-Invasion Poetics

Presented by Kelly Writers House and the Creative Writing Program, in association with the Institute of Contemporary Art, University of Pennsylvania

Organized by Charles Bernstein, Bob Perelman, and Susan Stewart

Friday - October 17, 2003 at Kelly Writers House
Full Reading (2:12:58): mp3, RealAudio

1. Jena Osman
    Memory Error Theater (4:02)
2. Charles Bernstein
    How Empty Is My Bread Pudding (4:58)
3. Mei-mei Berssenbrugge
    Safety (4:53)
4. Fanny Howe
    Far and Near & 2002 (3:21)
5. Jennifer Moxley
    To Those Who Would Equate the Public with Themselves & The Best American Poetry (4:12)
6. Peter Middleton
    Iraq pronounced Iraq (5:04)
7. James Sherry (3:33)
8. Gregory Djanikian
    The Armenian Question (3:29)
    Covenant (1:21)
9. Rodrigo Toscano
     Writing (6:12)
10. Frank Sherlock (3:39)
11. Tom Devaney (5:10)
12. Jessica Lowenthal (2:54)
13. Kathy Lou Schultz (2:44)
14. Mark McMorris (4:50)
15. Rod Smith (3:34)
16. Tim Carmody
       On Orwell (6:18)
17. Saskia Hamilton (4:15)
18. Susan Stewart
       from Columbarium (2:05)
19. Herman Beavers
       Dream - Minstrel with Gun (0:57)     
       Dream Lubricant (1:14)
       Cabal (1:42)       
20. Josh Schuster
      The Poetry Vote (0:49)
      The Withering of the State (1:22)
      The Photographer Awoke One Day (0:27)
21. Bob Perelman
      Revenge of the Bathwater (3:21)
22. Ron Silliman (5:32)
23. John Koethe (4:10)
24. Michael Fried (4:48)
25. Jennifer Snead (3:34)
26. Erica Hunt (8:40)
27. Rachel Blau DuPlessis (6:27)
28. Tracie Morris (2:11)
29. Josephine Park (1:36)

Saturday - October 18, 2003
at The Institue for Contemporary Art (Penn)

NOTE: THIS RECORDING IS LOW-FIDELTY & at times almost inaudible.

Introduction by Al Filreis and Bennett Simpson (1:57)
Full Reading (1:58:42): mp3, RealAudio

1. Herman Beavers (5:55)
2. Charles Bernstein (3:31)
3. Mei-mei Berssenbrugge (3:04)
4. Tim Carmody (4:54)
5. Tom Devaney (4:28)
6. Rachel Blau DuPlessis (4:28)
7. Gregory Djanikian (4:07)
8. Saskia Hamilton (3:55)
9. Fanny Howe (2:38)
10. Erica Hunt (3:41)
11. John Koethe (3:38)
12. Jessica Lowenthal (2:01)
13. Mark McMorris (3:44)
14. Matt Merlino (5:07)
15. Peter Middleton (3:41)
16. Tracie Morris (3:29)
17. Jennifer Moxley (3:14)
18. Jena Osman (3:33)
19. Bob Perelman (4:12)
20. Josh Schuster (3:16)
21. Kathy Lou Schultz (3:08)
22. Frank Sherlock (5:39)
23. James Sherry (5:29)
24. Ron Silliman (4:34)
25. Rod Smith (4:51)
26. Jennifer Snead (4:17)
27. Susan Stewart (2:22)
28. Rodrigo Toscano (6:15)

These readings were presented as part of Poetry and Empire: Post-Invasion Poetics — A Poetics Weekend

October 17-19, 2003.

Only the ICA reading on Oct. 19 was public.

Participants were invited to address the following questions (and to
modify the questions if they choose to):

What can a poem do? What is the sphere of consequence for poems today?
Are those consequences limited to established community circuits? Is
public poetic language an oxymoron?

What underlying ethical, social, and political values inform our
practices as poets and poetry teachers? How do we get feedback on these?

How do the structures of poetic communities resist or reinforce
existing categories of power and influence?

To what degree our local actions as poets and teachers affect larger
contexts, including national and international ones?

Do genre models (lyric, pastoral) and other established modes of
practice need to be re-articulated in light of changing modes of
dissemination and the new dynamics of global/transpersonal culture and
economy?

Can poetry challenge militarized language and propaganda? Are textual
critique, parody, and satire adequate responses or do they reify these
abuses?

Participants:
Herman Beavers, Charles Bernstein, Mei-mei Berssenbrugge, Tim Carmody, Tom Devaney, Greg Djanikian, Rachel DuPlessis, Al Filreis, Michael Fried, Allen Grossman, Saskia Hamilton, Fanny Howe, Erica Hunt, John Koethe, Jessica Lowenthal, Mark McMorris, Peter Middleton, Tracy Morris, Jennifer Moxley, Jena Osman, Josephine Park, Bob Perelman, Bernie Rhie, Kathy Lou Schultz, Frank Sherlock, James Sherry, Josh Schuster, Jennifer Snead, Ron Silliman, Rod Smith, Susan Stewart, and Rodrigo Toscano

Friday, 17 October:
8 - 10 PM: A reading by participants
10 - 11:30 PM: Reception

Saturday, 18 October:
9:30 AM: House opens; coffee provided
10:00 - 12:30: Round of responses/reflections
1:00 - 2:30 PM: Lunch
3:00 - 5: 00: Round of questions
5 - 6 PM: Break followed by dinner
7:30: meet at the Institute for Contemporary Art to view current shows
8 - 10 PM: Reading by participants at the Institute for Contemporary Arts
10:00 PM: Reception at Kelly Writers House

Sunday, 19 October:
10:00 - 11:00 AM: House opens; brunch
11:00 - 1:00 PM: Wrap-up

Recommended Reading
readings suggested by participants
James Sherry: "Global Environmental Models" (powerpoint) and "Environmental Poetics" (pdf)
Peter Middleton, "Five Ways of Saying 'Poetics' and 'Politics' in the Same Breath"
Josh Schuster, "Notes on War Aesthetics"

© 2005. These sound recordings are being made available for noncommercial and educational use only. All rights to this recorded material belong to the authors. Used with permission of the authors. Distributed by PennSound.