Tag: writing
+ Poetry
Three Poems of Ella Wheeler Wilcox
Here are three poems by a neglected (some would say deservedly so) Wisconsin born and raised American poet– Ella Wheeler Wilcox, whose late 19th and early 20th Century verse is full of rhyme and meter and “sentimental” Victorian optimism, the very thing the Modernists rebelled against. And yet many of her poems have a witty, whimsical forthrightness about them. Even the strident activism of … Read More Three Poems of Ella Wheeler Wilcox
Couplets: “The Human Wall”
Because no one will pay to build His WALL– Not Mexico, not Congress, not even the Wall Street Journal or Faux News, not anyone— The PRESIDENT will send soldiers with guns To make sure Mexico does not invade. Nat. Guard will guard the desert (without shade) As long as Trump proclaims that they will stand On rattlesnakes and in the Rio Grande. And who will … Read More Couplets: “The Human Wall”
Introducing Rhymed Couplets in honor of the Trump Administration . . .
“Tough Love” Trump will issue tariffs in “a very loving way.” (He thinks that we will love him even when we lose our pay.)
William Blake: “Auguries of Innocence”
[JFK: An augury is an omen and this is a political poem because . . . today is Blake’s birthday and the poem details connections, relationships ecological and human we too often, especially in the halls of power, fail to acknowledge. The first four lines are famous but we often neglect the rest of this poem of transcendental justice. Thanks to the Poetry Foundation … Read More William Blake: “Auguries of Innocence”
Robinson Jeffers: “Be Angry at the Sun”
[JFK: Here’s a poetic perspective on politics some may call cynical, some may say stoic. Jeffers referred to his philosophical distance from people as “inhumanism.” This should not, however, be confused with inhumane-ism. Jeffers built a house of stone in Carmel, CA overlooking the Pacific in the days before Carmel was a haven for wealth and tourists. My favorite lines are “the cold passion … Read More Robinson Jeffers: “Be Angry at the Sun”
Rumple Oxbridge: “The More War Sonnet for Afghanistan”
By Rumple Oxbridge, liberal lyricist Trump has a plan to fix Afghanistan: more war will do what war has not before. It is a plan not hard to understand his “war cabinet” advises–War fails? Try more. Eventually this war will have to end but stopping war before we win is like un-masculine and feminist. Pretend (riding on a wheel-less warrior-bike) we’re getting to … Read More Rumple Oxbridge: “The More War Sonnet for Afghanistan”
+ Uncategorized
The Pacific Has Returned
by John Frederick Kaufman
The Pacific has returned (it seems to come and go like the tide) to the digital realm and intends to stick around. It will now be known as an “oceanic journal of criticism,” addressing peaceable politics, literature, culture broadly-speaking (including the fine arts), as well as topics relating to marine environmentalism in general and the Pacific Northwest coast in particular. This personal journal will … Read More The Pacific Has Returned