Near Sunset, 2013
"Poetry, the human feeling, the 'kitten', is so crowded out of the humdrum, rushing, mechanical scramble of today that the man who would preserve them must duck and camouflage for dear life to keep himself from annihilation."
-from a letter Hart Crane wrote in 1921, quoted in Madness, Rack, and Honey by Mary Ruefle
In 1921 it was 'mechanical scramble', today it is being 'plugged in'. The preservation was and is worthwhile.
Ah, Crane's 'kitten crying in the wilderness'. Everyone in class rolled their eyes... even me, but inside I wanted to rescue said kitten. I've never read his letters.
ReplyDeleteFunny. According to Ruefle, in this letter he's explaining what he meant by kitten.
DeleteWhat DID he mean by kitten?
DeleteEquating the kitten to poetry and the human feeling, I believe.
DeleteWhat a beautiful picture and impressive poetry!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing, Denise
Thanks, Daniela. I adore the spot where I made this photograph. Not a poem by Crane, but a letter about poetry.
ReplyDeleteyes, to preserve poetry, to cherish something that can bring solace by its humanity. Thank you for this post.
ReplyDeleteThank you for preserving.
DeleteI like the sound of this book. Just this afternoon I was sent this link outlining 'the problems of fast paced modern living' as noted in the late 1800's...goodness only knows what these people would make of the world we live in today...
ReplyDeleteMy reflex is to believe they'd wish to leave our world immediately and head directly home, but it would be interesting if they found they actually loved it here in 2013. We have some nice things happening here, on most days.
DeleteI love this thought - so relevant. Preserving the poetry of life is sanity.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful silhouette & light!