i just read jonathan's rant against andrei codrescu's Up Late anthology. i remember first buying that anthology and getting a brief taste of some poets who later became very important to me. for example, that's the first place i saw these pieces by anselm hollo.
t.v. (1)
“for he is ishi the last of his tribe”
“couldn’t help noticing your aftershave”
the brain which takes that in its stride
is yours & mine & it is late
t.v. (2)
fuzzy
nazis!
twenty-five years
pass.
then,
more fuzzy nazis!
i liked these pieces right away upon seeing them in the anthology. in “t.v.(1)” hollo quickly moves from the disappearance of a tribe to aftershave, suggesting the quickness of attention that we all are used to from t.v., the way we just take it in stride, and that it seems odd that we don’t notice when it happens. then he throws in “it is late,” which suggest the lateness of the hour of watching t.v. with its feeling of fatigue (we might be forgiven because we are tired), or perhaps the “it is late” plays on the notion that “it is late” to notice that we do not notice the quick change. he moves into “t.v.(2)” in which he discusses the reoccurrence of the nazis in a difference form. they are “fuzzy” nazis, but then again, are not nazis always fuzzy? and they repeat. perhaps if we did notice the disconnect from "t.v. (1)," we would be better at noticing the the “fuzzy” nazis in any form.
anyway, it seems a little late to pan an anthology put out in 1989.
t.v. (1)
“for he is ishi the last of his tribe”
“couldn’t help noticing your aftershave”
the brain which takes that in its stride
is yours & mine & it is late
t.v. (2)
fuzzy
nazis!
twenty-five years
pass.
then,
more fuzzy nazis!
i liked these pieces right away upon seeing them in the anthology. in “t.v.(1)” hollo quickly moves from the disappearance of a tribe to aftershave, suggesting the quickness of attention that we all are used to from t.v., the way we just take it in stride, and that it seems odd that we don’t notice when it happens. then he throws in “it is late,” which suggest the lateness of the hour of watching t.v. with its feeling of fatigue (we might be forgiven because we are tired), or perhaps the “it is late” plays on the notion that “it is late” to notice that we do not notice the quick change. he moves into “t.v.(2)” in which he discusses the reoccurrence of the nazis in a difference form. they are “fuzzy” nazis, but then again, are not nazis always fuzzy? and they repeat. perhaps if we did notice the disconnect from "t.v. (1)," we would be better at noticing the the “fuzzy” nazis in any form.
anyway, it seems a little late to pan an anthology put out in 1989.
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