Full Title: Natasha Trethewey | A conversation on what it means to be a Poet Laureate (via Eternal Graffiti)
A couple days ago I talked about a conversation I had with a younger poet who did not know who Shane Koyczan was. Which reminded me of a conversation I had at a youth writing workshop recently where the topic of a “Poet Laureate” came up. Most of the youth had blank faces when asked who and what one was. Then one poet said, “That’s the old white dudes that read dull poems at big events right?”
Wrong!
After breaking it down for him, we talked further about the place academic poetry has in slam and vice versa. Every poet has a thought on page vs stage poetry, on academic vs slam. These conversations are getting more and more progressive, and the two worlds are getting closer and closer which in my opinion is a great thing. But no matter where you stand or what your position is, it is my belief that every poet should be educated about all the worlds of poetry. This is why we spent a large part of the workshop breaking it down, and in some ways slowing down the firestorm in all of their heads [until they were able to] simply listen and appreciate the beautiful language & images the poets were creating.
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