John Cage

[dillingworth]

"I have nothing to say and I am saying it and that is poetry" - John Cage.

This is a "villanelle" in the same way that "Coronary" was. I should point out the poem has no association with Cage other than using his words.

I have nothing to say, and I am
filling my mouth with a rotten line and
saying it, and that is poetry.

I want to speak with flame-touched tongue
and say I am not as I seem, but
I have nothing to say and I am.

Underestimating minutiae
is tantamount to heresy:
saying "it" and "that" is poetry.

Redistributing ink, I am playing
Scrabble with myself and losing -
I have nothing to say and I am

shuffling syllables when I should be
beyond parlour games, feeling rage
and saying it. And that is poetry:

a verbal inferno, not this lukewarm
torrent, spat out as soon as tasted.
I have nothing to say, and I am
saying it and that is poetry.

[pseud]

lovely poem, even if it isn't the kind of villanelle I'm used to.

What is different by the way? Just the absence of rhyme? The repetition is different too...

Why even go down the villanelle road, I wonder? Just post this without the claim to form. I have to say, I think this is your best. I smell a feature. This is great work.

- Caleb

[David]

"That for which we find words is something already dead in our hearts. There is always a kind of contempt in the act of speaking."

Nietzsche.

I'm still thinking about it.

[RobertFlorey]

"I have nothing to say and I am saying it and that is poetry" - John Cage.

This is a "villanelle" in the same way that "Coronary" was. I should point out the poem has no association with Cage other than using his words.

I have nothing to say, and I am
filling my mouth with a rotten line and
saying it, and that is poetry.

I want to speak with flame-touched tongue
and say I am not as I seem, but
I have nothing to say and I am.

Underestimating minutiae
is tantamount to heresy:
saying "it" and "that" is poetry.

Redistributing ink, I am playing
Scrabble with myself and losing -
I have nothing to say and I am

shuffling syllables when I should be
beyond parlour games, feeling rage
and saying it. And that is poetry:

a verbal inferno, not this lukewarm
torrent, spat out as soon as tasted.
I have nothing to say, and I am
saying it and that is poetry.

It's a flamingly good poem, Dillingworth.
It does stand alone, something-like-a-villanelle or
French post-modernist vanilla, or a
Dillingworth-Villanellworth.

But of course, it's much too revealing and communicative
for John Cage and you're right-- he'd probably die from
envy if he could only have written it.

Thanks for putting it where I could read it.

Rob

[kozmikdave]

Gidday

Funny David mentioned Nietzsche. I was thinking "Nice bit of existentialism here. Very European. Loved the placement of the repeated "I am".
Now I have to look up "villanelle".

Well done
Dave

[cameron]

Very effective dill; nice one. It reminded me of Wendy Cope's The Uncertainty of the Poet.

C

[Saul]

/

[Duncan Williams.]

Enjoyed reading this poem David, you must be building up quite a collection. kind regards. Duncan Williams.

[cameron]

New feature. Congrats dill.