Parker's Poetry

Poetry has always been a challenge for me. The best way I can describe our relationship is that it is one of those “love-hate” dichotomies where I love how short it is, but hate that I do not “get it.” One fact I am willing to concede is that over my high school (and yes, college too) careers, I have been exposed to poetry that I may not have understood at first, but later found such deep, multi-layered messages, that in the end, I cannot do anything but appreciate the beauty in those short lines. Granted, the appreciation did not come entirely from myself, and it was only after someone else held my hand and walked me through it that I started to pick up the underlying (or overarching) themes. Maybe one day I will reach complete poetic autonomy and not need someone to help in my decipherment, but until that day, I am content with acknowledging my simple victory in the fact that I no longer cringe at the mention of having to read it (and on a good day, sometimes even look forward to the challenge).

Where am I going with all this? The poetry following Dorothy Parker’s prose piece was completely unexpected. By far, her poems might be my favorite pieces so far in the course. One strain I particularly enjoy about her pieces is how they play with what an audience expects from a woman author (who usually gets stereotyped as being a hopeless romantic, always rooting for “true love”). “Unusual Coincidence” and “General Review of the Sex Situation,” both humorously point out the faultiness in love, and how it does not always prevail given the realities of life. From here, the conversation can easily diverge into all sorts of avenues, going anywhere from gender expectations of monogamy to what is “true love,” to whether or not relationships really are maintained based on lies. Parker’s poetry is simply brilliant, and wonderfully demonstrates my personal definition of perfect poetry:

1. They are accessible to anyone: I can read it for myself and understand what is happening; I do not need an authority or outside explanation to comprehend what the piece is speaking about or what is happening.

and

2. They are not devoid of a deeper meaning: On top of being straightforward, there are still deeper implications and commentary coming out of what her poems’ state, and as such, prove that a poem does not have to be purposefully obscure if it wants to have a profound message or open up meaningful dialogue.

There are other qualities I look for in poetry (humor being a big “plus” on my list), however, the above are the two main criteria I approach a poem with, and if it can successfully fulfill them, I almost always come out adoring it. Poetry and I have come a long way in our relationship—I no longer irrationally hate everything about it, and it every now and then throws me an enjoyable piece I cannot help but love.