Poetry Provides Peek Into Past

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Poetry Provides Peek Into Past

From: Francesca Rheannon
Length: 00:06:07

Four women poets tell history through verse Read the full description.

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Piece Description

Poetry has traditionally been used to tell current generations about the past. In honor of National Poetry Month, Francesca Rheannon talked with four poet-historians. Annie Boutelle is a founder of Smith College's Poetry Center. Her poem cycle BECOMING BONE, is about the 19th century poet Celia Thaxter. Gail Thomas uses verse to explore the history of place. Her book, NO SIMPLE WILDERNESS, AN ELEGY FOR THE SWIFT RIVER VALLEY, is about the drowning of towns and villages in the 1920?s and 30?s to create the Quabbin Reservoir near Amherst, Massachusetts. Holly Iglesias? poetry cycle, NOW YOU SEE IT, is about the 1904 World?s Fair in St. Louis, her hometown. And Janet Aalfs is Poet Laureate of Northampton, Massachusetts. She explores the history of the Northampton area through her work.

Broadcast History

Earlier version originally aired on 88.5 WFCR in Amherst on 4/29/05 on local feature slot of ME.

Transcript

Poetry Provides Peek Into the Past

00:00 opens with Scott Joplin?s Maple Leaf Rag, music fades under at
00:02 seconds

Trax 1: Poetry has long been used to tell stories about the past: think of Homer?s Odyssey or Henry Longfellow?s ?Midnight Ride of Paul Revere?. Poetry may be uniquely suited to the task, says Janet Aalfs. She?s Poet Laureate of the small New England city, Northampton, Massachusetts:

Aalfs Ax1: There's a way that the heart can come alive, that the heart of history can come alive; even though poetry is not necessarily fact, per se, I believe it gets more to the truth of a culture or a person's existence in the context of actual historical events.

TRAX2: Annie Boutelle is one of several poets exploring the genre of historical poetry. A founder of Smith College?s Poetry Center, she became fascinated by Celia Thaxter, a 19th century poet from New England. Tha...
Read the full transcript

Timing and Cues

MUSIC:
00:00 music entrance
00:02 music fades under
4:28 music up
4:31 music under voice
4:32 Music fades
5:06 music entrance
5:07 fades under voice
5:14 music fades