Line Breaths in Allen Ginsberg’s Poetry
“I am not thoroughly satisfied with what he has done. I have told him—I mean I am disgusted with him and his long lines.” As Williams delivers this message to his friend Walter Sutton, he condemns what he sees as Allen Ginsberg’s inability to both carve and curb his verse. This article explores what...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Association Française d'Etudes Américaines
2021-07-01
|
| Series: | Transatlantica |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/17094 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1832580778599383040 |
|---|---|
| author | Anna Aublet |
| author_facet | Anna Aublet |
| author_sort | Anna Aublet |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | “I am not thoroughly satisfied with what he has done. I have told him—I mean I am disgusted with him and his long lines.” As Williams delivers this message to his friend Walter Sutton, he condemns what he sees as Allen Ginsberg’s inability to both carve and curb his verse. This article explores what occurs when the line won’t break, when it goes on stubbornly wandering off the page. Ginsberg’s long verse thus comes to index a break in his modernist lineage. It operates a departure from his modernist masters, Williams, Pound and Eliot. According to the Beat poet, the line should not be modelled after the length of the page, but rather attempt to break its delineations so as to return the poem to its original breath. These observations invite us to take a closer look at the long line as both a political and personal expression of the poet’s journey on and off the page. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ac978091d31d4d5f89e074a421109df7 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1765-2766 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2021-07-01 |
| publisher | Association Française d'Etudes Américaines |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Transatlantica |
| spelling | doaj-art-ac978091d31d4d5f89e074a421109df72025-01-30T10:43:38ZengAssociation Française d'Etudes AméricainesTransatlantica1765-27662021-07-01110.4000/transatlantica.17094Line Breaths in Allen Ginsberg’s PoetryAnna Aublet“I am not thoroughly satisfied with what he has done. I have told him—I mean I am disgusted with him and his long lines.” As Williams delivers this message to his friend Walter Sutton, he condemns what he sees as Allen Ginsberg’s inability to both carve and curb his verse. This article explores what occurs when the line won’t break, when it goes on stubbornly wandering off the page. Ginsberg’s long verse thus comes to index a break in his modernist lineage. It operates a departure from his modernist masters, Williams, Pound and Eliot. According to the Beat poet, the line should not be modelled after the length of the page, but rather attempt to break its delineations so as to return the poem to its original breath. These observations invite us to take a closer look at the long line as both a political and personal expression of the poet’s journey on and off the page.https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/17094poetrymodernismWilliam Carlos WilliamsAllen GinsbergBeat generationfree verse |
| spellingShingle | Anna Aublet Line Breaths in Allen Ginsberg’s Poetry Transatlantica poetry modernism William Carlos Williams Allen Ginsberg Beat generation free verse |
| title | Line Breaths in Allen Ginsberg’s Poetry |
| title_full | Line Breaths in Allen Ginsberg’s Poetry |
| title_fullStr | Line Breaths in Allen Ginsberg’s Poetry |
| title_full_unstemmed | Line Breaths in Allen Ginsberg’s Poetry |
| title_short | Line Breaths in Allen Ginsberg’s Poetry |
| title_sort | line breaths in allen ginsberg s poetry |
| topic | poetry modernism William Carlos Williams Allen Ginsberg Beat generation free verse |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/17094 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT annaaublet linebreathsinallenginsbergspoetry |