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Today’s poetry: Finding its way

To say that poetry no longer matters is a gross misreading of the facts.

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Then-poet laureate W.S. Merwin finishes a poetry reading at the Library of Congress in May. The mid-20th century was a heyday of sorts for American poetry: Poets were published and reviewed in newspapers and magazines. Book releases were big events. But in the decades since, as Dana Gioia argued in his 1991 essay “Can Poetry Matter?” it became increasingly isolated and invisible. Spoken-word poetry and other forms began to fill the void.

ANDREW COUNCILL / FOR THE WASHINGTON POST

Merwin, 82 and living on a former pineapple plantation on Maui, signs books for a large crowd at the Library of Congress.

Merwin, 82 and living on a former pineapple plantation on Maui, signs books for a large crowd at the Library of Congress.

ANDREW COUNCILL / FOR THE WASHINGTON POST

Poet Derrick Weston Brown hosts open-mike night at Busboys and Poets on 14th Street NW. <span>In the 1990s, </span>
<span>spoken-word poetry and open mikes proliferated. </span>

Poet Derrick Weston Brown hosts open-mike night at Busboys and Poets on 14th Street NW. In the 1990s, spoken-word poetry and open mikes proliferated.

ANDREW COUNCILL / FOR THE WASHINGTON POST

$Brown at the mike. Today there are many varieties of poetry: workshops and series for traditionalists and avant garde alike or for marginalized voices, and events such as Crescent Moon Nights for Muslim poets. But the scene is so fractured, with so many small journals and venues, that the best voices may go unheard by a wider audience.$

Brown at the mike. Today there are many varieties of poetry: workshops and series for traditionalists and avant garde alike or for marginalized voices, and events such as Crescent Moon Nights for Muslim poets. But the scene is so fractured, with so many small journals and venues, that the best voices may go unheard by a wider audience.

ANDREW COUNCILL / FOR THE WASHINGTON POST

From left, Alec McRae, Lee Giesecke, Dean Blehert, Pam Blehert and Ron Vardiman, of the Federal Poets, meet at the West End Library in September. The group was founded in 1944 for workers for the federal government and has been meeting ever since (members no longer have to work for the government). Its members are now an unclassifiable mix of subjects and styles; most members have been attending meetings for years and some for decades.

From left, Alec McRae, Lee Giesecke, Dean Blehert, Pam Blehert and Ron Vardiman, of the Federal Poets, meet at the West End Library in September. The group was founded in 1944 for workers for the federal government and has been meeting ever since (members no longer have to work for the government). Its members are now an unclassifiable mix of subjects and styles; most members have been attending meetings for years and some for decades.

ANDREW COUNCILL / FOR THE WASHINGTON POST

Michelle Seaman reacts to a poem during the meeting.

Michelle Seaman reacts to a poem during the meeting.

ANDREW COUNCILL / FOR THE WASHINGTON POST

At Hart Middle School in Anacostia, David McIntyre, center, works on a writing exercise during the D.C. Creative Writing Workshop in May. The after-school program takes a surprisingly traditional approach to creative writing. It teaches poetry the way it has been taught for nearly a century: by studying a poem and then writing one. Teachers in the D.C. Creative Writing Workshop are published writers who either have or are working on degrees in creative writing. The best of the student work is published in the school’s literary journal, hArtworks.

At Hart Middle School in Anacostia, David McIntyre, center, works on a writing exercise during the D.C. Creative Writing Workshop in May. The after-school program takes a surprisingly traditional approach to creative writing. It teaches poetry the way it has been taught for nearly a century: by studying a poem and then writing one. Teachers in the D.C. Creative Writing Workshop are published writers who either have or are working on degrees in creative writing. The best of the student work is published in the school’s literary journal, hArtworks.

ANDREW COUNCILL / FOR THE WASHINGTON POST

Cer'cia Wallace reads one of her poems at Hart Middle. Now in its 12th year, the D.C. Creative Writing Workshop is a fixture at Hart; founder and director Nancy Schwalb has had to open it to students at nearby Ballou High School so that kids could attend after leaving middle school. At any given time, the club has at least as many members as Hart’s football team. That the students have latched onto poetry so devotedly remains, for Schwalb, a mystery. In part, Schwalb thinks, poetry makes a place for an inward focus.

Cer'cia Wallace reads one of her poems at Hart Middle. Now in its 12th year, the D.C. Creative Writing Workshop is a fixture at Hart; founder and director Nancy Schwalb has had to open it to students at nearby Ballou High School so that kids could attend after leaving middle school. At any given time, the club has at least as many members as Hart’s football team. That the students have latched onto poetry so devotedly remains, for Schwalb, a mystery. In part, Schwalb thinks, poetry makes a place for an inward focus.

ANDREW COUNCILL / FOR THE WASHINGTON POST

Sharri Barnes reads a poem she wrote. Writing club students routinely sweep citywide print-poetry competitions: This year, 10 of the 40 winners of the Parkmont Poetry Contest were from Hart or Ballou. As much as the kids need poetry, it seems, so does poetry need the kids at Hart.

Sharri Barnes reads a poem she wrote. Writing club students routinely sweep citywide print-poetry competitions: This year, 10 of the 40 winners of the Parkmont Poetry Contest were from Hart or Ballou. As much as the kids need poetry, it seems, so does poetry need the kids at Hart.

ANDREW COUNCILL / FOR THE WASHINGTON POST

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