Do you not think that this is a typical attitude only in the U.S.? Poets in other countries commit prose all the time and see themselves as public intellectuals (and so are seen as that by their public), whereas in the U.S. poets suffer under the delusion that the more recondite their writing, the more "authentic" it must be. A primary question I always have in mind when reading a book of poetry is this: "For whom is this poet writing?" In the U.S., it's more often than not for other poets, mostly fellow grads of MFA programs. A sad situation.
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Do you not think that this is a typical attitude only in the U.S.? Poets in other countries commit prose all the time and see themselves as public intellectuals (and so are seen as that by their public), whereas in the U.S. poets suffer under the delusion that the more recondite their writing, the more "authentic" it must be. A primary question I always have in mind when reading a book of poetry is this: "For whom is this poet writing?" In the U.S., it's more often than not for other poets, mostly fellow grads of MFA programs. A sad situation.
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