re: nascient

Paul Kennedy (kennedyp@toronto.cbc.ca)
Fri, 12 Mar 1999 13:08:25 -0500 (EST) 

Since this whole argument (discussion?) was prompted by a flame from Scottie
on the inappropriateness of the exclusive use of lower case letters when
clear communication is the goal, allow me to try to contribute to this
discussion by attempting to publicly post the only e. e. cummings poem that
I've ever managed to memorize.  In fact, it is somehow entirely appropriate
that I recently misquoted this poem when attempting to post it privately to
Scottie....  But more on THAT in a moment.  First, the poem:

           WRONG VERSION                        RIGHT VERSION

                  1                                  1
                 one                                one
                  1                                  1
                 why?                                y?


(Come to think of it, I may be wrong about the question mark.... It's quite
possible that there never was, and never should be a question mark....  But
I've loved the poem ever since the first time I saw it in print--and, for
obvious reasons, it's a poem that only works in print.  It can't be read
aloud.  It's ALL style, Right Matt?)

Anyway, by way of deconstructing this particular contribution, let me say,
as I tried to say to Scottie, that I'll let mr. cummings get away with
living an entire life in lower case letters.  But I don't think everybody
ought to get away with it.  (And--this may be anathema--I don't expect that
cummings' poetry will live much longer than a moment or two into the next
millennium.)  My major complaint is not that it's "cute".  I'm most bothered
by the fact that I consider it "lazy"--an all-too-easy means of calling
attention to the 'poetry' in one's prose....

As I constantly tell my 13-year-old daughter (who has been subjected to an
intellectual travesty called "Whole Language", by which her teachers accuse
me of dulling down her creativity by insisting that she spell correctly) "If
it can't be read because it doesn't make easy sense, there's no point in
putting it onto paper!"

Obligatory Salinger Observation:  De Daumier-Smith's Blue Period is the only
story listed on a YELLOW background on my 75 cent Bantam paperback copy of
the NINE STORIES.....  (As every bananafish instinctively knows, yellow is a
VERY significant colour in Salinger.....)  Down at the Dinghy is the only
GREEN story.....  What does ANYONE suppose this means?

Cheers,
Paul


PS--OK.... Alright....  I'll admit the stylistic sloppiness of all my
elipses.  It's a horrible typographic tick, and I'm sure I'll be cured next
time I look into the window of my neighbourhood orthopaedic appliances shop.