To argue with a man who has renounced the use … of reason,
and whose philosophy consists in holding humanity in contempt,
is like administering medicine to the dead…. – Thomas Paine.
I like to do stuff and then see if I can locate some manner of intelligent explanation.
This brief explanation of list poetry comes from Connor Sansby.
List poetry refers to poems written as lists. This can be in full sentences or as single words.
History
List poetry, sometimes known as catalogue verse, isn’t really a form as such but it is widely-used. It’s hard to know when the first list was used as a poem, and indeed, many lists are repurposed into poems at a later date.
For example, the Bible contains various forms of poetry, arguably including extensive lists. Homer’s Iliad is an example of a partial list poem as it reels through lists of Trojan warriors.
Modern poets such as Roger McGough and John Hegley have used lists to great effect, often hiding layers of subtext between the items on the list.
Form
A list poem is simply a list. This could be a list of single words, or it could be a list of sentences.
These lists do not necessarily need rhythm or rhyme.
What separates a list poem from a list, I would offer, is subtext. It’s not enough for things to just be listed. They must have a relation to each other, tell a story or offer commentary.
Use
A list can be a highly accessible way of introducing poetry to an audience, but the poet should remain considerate of the list’s purpose.
In the hands of a master poet, the list poem can be a surprisingly insightful form, though its true strength lies in how ordinary it is. It is simple to grasp the notion of a list, and it is easy to write and therefore also a good form to practice if you’re starting out in writing poetry.
List poetry shows people they can write, and that poetry doesn’t have to be anything super-elite or overwrought, but it can also demonstrate the scope that is possible, even within the simplest writing.
List poetry is a perfect gateway into poetry. There are no rhymes nor meter to adhere to. List poetry is simply a list.
That’s what I’m doing. Here’s why I am doing it.
Some asshole on Facebook was confidently explaining his support for The Blob. (Buffoonish Lying Orange Blowhard – love him or hate him, that’s just fact. You know it, I know it, you may even know it better than me.)
You know how on Facebook and you’re having a pool party and suddenly somebody is filling his pocket with jumbo shrimp and turns out he’s the one mutual friend of somebody you respect. The only mutual friend.
I block his ass but not before hitting him with kids in cages and pussy grabbing. The classics.
He swings back, the last I hear from this idiot, perhaps Russian bot trying to make me hate sanity, says “pe.”
That’s it. That’s his come back: pee-ee. Lower case.
I might’ve come back at him with wtf. What the fuck? Whiskey-Tango-Foxtrot?
That’s the last of our conversation. pe.
Which got me wondering.
Perhaps? Pee on me!
People who need people…
Bot code maybe. No idea.
pe. Couldn’t guess.
He’s a bot or he’s a Trump supporter. Just like a bot when you ponder on it. Not exactly somebody I can think like.
I mean, really, if nothing else, Russian bounties on American troops and our – “burp” – Commander-in-Chief is all ‘shoot away.’ That doesn’t bother you?
PE (not in order of how I thought about it)
Premature Ejaculation (male condition)
Prostate Exam
Public Enemy
Pelvic Exam
Peru
Physical Education
Professional Engineer
Price to Earnings
Performance Evaluation
Per Esempio
Probable Error
Press Enterprise
Professional Engineer
Provider Edge
Practice Expense
Pulmonary Edema
Port Elizabeth
Private Equity
Portable Executable
Project Engineer
Program Element
Potential Energy
Professional Ethics
Prince Edward Island
Pericardial Effusion
Platinum Edition
Planet Earth
Pervasive Expression
Phosphatidylethanolamine.
Oh, one more thing.
Last thing on the list.
Perhaps.
I am not sure I am completely good with this sentence from Connor Sansby: “List poetry shows people they can write.”