Phati’tude

Week of September 9: Pietri, Nuyorican Poetry, and publishing

Hank Williams Uncategorized , , , , , , , ,

Update: Tuesday 9/9: Assignment for Thursday 9/11 posted

Tuesday 9/9: Pedro Pietri; “Puerto Rican Obituary”

Pedro Pietri reading at the Poetry Project
Pedro Pietri reading at the Poetry Project

For Tuesday, continue reading Pedro Pietri. (Re?)Read “Puerto Rican Obituary” and “The Broken English Dream”. Also read “Suicide Note from a Cockroach”, “Love Poem for My People”, “Unemployed” and “OD”.

Now that we’ve covered some of Pietri’s life, think about how points from his personal outlook on religion, death, and the ambivalence toward the American Dream are reflected in the poems. Again, look for specific points that reveal how he approaches the subjects and make a note of them.

The presentation I did in class today is on the Lecture Notes page. Use some of the contextual questions to help guide your reading and what to focus on.

Think of the following questions as you read:

  • How does Pietri’s writing define the urban experience for the people he’s writing about?
  • What type of urban environment does he describe?
  • What language does he use and how does that reflect the urban situation?
  • Do you see any of the points Pietri makes in the interview reflected in the writing? Make note of a few examples.

    • Thursday 9/11: Guest Speaker. Gabrielle David of 2Leaf Press on publishing, Nuyorican poetry, and Pietri.

    On Thursday, we’ll have a special guest speaker: Gabrielle David (bio), editor of Phati’tude literary magazine and principal at 2Leaf Press, which has published some key works in Nuyorican poetry and culture and is working on getting Pietri’s work re-released.

    Watch the following for Thursday’s class:

    Short video introduction to poet Jesus Papoleto Melendez in which he reads a poem and talks about El Barrio/ East Harlem

    “Last Poet in Harlem”. Poet Abiodun Oyewole reads a poem from his new 2Leaf press book and talks about his relationship to Harlem.

    Things to think about in the videos:

  • How does place relate to their work?
  • How do they describe the influence of urban space and their neighborhoods on their work?

    • Read the following for Thursday’s class:

  • “Introduction to the Poetry of Miguel Piñero” from Outlaw: The Collected Works.
  • “Introduction to the Drama of Miguel Piñero” from Outlaw: The Collected Works

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