Found+Poetry

=What it is=

Here, a poet digs through everyday material (like magazines) and then chooses a sentence to rearrange to look like poetry. By rearranging a sentence, the poet practices working with __form__ as well as developing an ear for __poetic phrases__, no matter where they’re found. A poem’s form is how it is arranged – where the line breaks and stanza breaks occur, how the lines are spaced, and which words are emphasized. Poets like [|E.E. Cummings] are particularly famous for arranging poems with alternative and mysterious forms.

=Why we are trying it=

The main thing found poetry does is help us to realize that **//every space in a poem counts//** for something. The poet [|Donald Hall] puts it this way: “You should stare at a poem long enough so that you have one hundred reasons for using every comma, one hundred reasons for every line break, one hundred reasons for every //and// and //or//.” By playing with form, you discover that you can make even a “regular” sentence say something more simply by structuring it differently.

=What to do=

Pick a magazine from the pile and leaf through it for a while. Skim articles and advertisements and keep your eyes open for poetic sounding phrases and statements. Especially look for things that are not currently arranged in a poetic form (some advertisements, as you know, toy with such forms), this way you will have truly "found" a poem where it is not expected.

When you have a phrase or series of phrases you like, write it down in a regular line on your paper, as a quote. Put underneath it where you found it and the page number. Then, below that, attempt to rearrange the line so it looks like poetry. Be intentional about how you arrange every space. Consider how you might change the meaning or imply more by moving things around or by breaking a word across two lines.

Be creative, and don't pressure yourself to create perfection. Just try to make is say something or emphasize something it didn't emphasize before - simply by moving letters around.

=An Example=

From ESPN.com: "Mr. Bonds is a major-league baseball player," Ruby said.