ALJ728
by
Samuel Byrnand (217604105)
Thursday, September 21, 2017: the final night of the 3rd annual Poetry on the Move (POTM) festival, held at the University of Canberra. Steven Oliver of Black Comedy fame is MC’ing and presenting the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Poetry Prize. His small physical stature is exaggerated to behemoth proportions as he storms across the auditorium stage, spitting an a capella filled with rage and passion and hope into his mic. The crowd may not be used to this kind of poetry – this blazing, visceral rap that (god forbid) rhymes – but Oliver’s presence fills the room, his sharp staccato vocals shake dusty expectations to the floor, and his message bores into every person politely seated in their finery, battering old-fashioned sensibilities, and enlivening the young and young at heart.
Oliver’s hip-hop bent comes as a surprise to
some; an unexpected dose of wake-the-heck-up at what otherwise promised to be a
more solemn and sombre event. To others, however, it comes as the breath of
fresh air that Australian performance poetry might desperately need.
Australian poetry – steeped in a foundation of
pastoral romanticism – might require some of these new flavours; these screams,
stamps, shouts, expletives exploding from shameless mouths, cries of anguish at
the state of one’s people, at the state of one’s nation, at the state of the
world in all its pointless and agonizing trials. And if this is the case then
surely the POTM festival, with its rapidly expanding international profile, and
all the connotations inherent in its very name, is the place to test the new
sound.
"Having enthusiastic young people on board is good for any creative community."
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| The 2017 Recent Work Press catalogue, published by Shane Strange |
Shane Strange is the founder and editor of
Recent Work Press – a local Canberra publishing house that specialises in poetry from local, national and international
artists. Shane is also closely involved in the operations behind POTM. He
believes that the exclusion of forms that employ rhyme (such as hip-hop,
limerick, and Australian bush poetry) is due to the fact that there is no
market for rhyming verse in what is known to some as ‘high culture’ poetry.
"There's definitely a disconnect between the rhyming forms and this high culture poetry."
“There’s a space for hip-hop and there’s a
space for high culture poetry, and while there might be some overlap on occasion,
you’re really talking about two different things.” Shane explains that the
rhyming forms tend to be geared towards performance to a live audience, and
that these forms do not necessarily translate well onto the page. “That said, I
don’t think there was a single person in the house who wasn’t moved by Steven
Oliver’s rap. There is real power in that style.”
Dr Paul Collis is a Barkandji man and poet who
teaches creative writing at the University of Canberra. Dr Collis indicates
that there might some active classism within certain literary circles regarding hip-hop
style: “Rhyming poetry is seen as being too easy, too simplistic…perhaps naïve by
nature. Hip-hop is still considered to be kiddy stuff by some people, you know?
There’s definitely a disconnect between the rhyming forms and this high culture
poetry they talk about.”
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| Dr Paul Collis(L) and Shane Strange(R) at POTM 2017 |
Dr Collis continues to explain that while this
exclusivity clearly exists in poetic circles, it is overall a very inclusive
community that openly welcomes poets from every known nation and cultural and
linguistic background. “As an Aboriginal man, I haven’t always felt safe or
welcome in certain communities in this country, but the poetry mob here are
generally a wonderful bunch of interesting folks who hail from just about every
country on the planet. It really is a multicultural success story – unfortunately,
one that is not always mirrored in the broader Australian society.”
Poetry is largely agreed to be a place where
cultural heritage is celebrated by all involved. It is, however, an unfortunate fact that this fellowship of
cultures still acts to reinforce wide-reaching traditional patriarchal
standards, maintaining systems of inequality in gender and sexual identity.
"Poetry can still be quite accepting of male sexual violence towards women and this is something that must change."
Katie Hayne is an administrator at the
University of Canberra who is deeply involved in the administrative operations
of POTM. Katie observes that while the poetry community works hard to provide a
safe and welcoming space for women and queer people, this is not always the case.
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| Katie Hayne(L) with POTM 2017 symposium keynote, Glyn Maxwell(R) |
“It still seems to be largely a male space, and
this is never more evident than when men choose to recite sexually explicit material
to rooms full, or half full, of women.” Katie explains that sexually explicit
material is still popular, though mostly among older male poets. Katie’s
concerns speak to deeper issues within the poetry community: the sanctity of
the form, and the dominance of the patriarchal paradigm that still pervades.
Katie continues, “I think inclusion of a
broader set of forms, and especially fresher forms like hip-hop, would be good
for things. Obviously, having enthusiastic young people on board is good for
any creative community – helps shake out the cobwebs.”
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| Lydia Chan at the 2017 University of Canberra Poetry Prizes ceremony |
Katie’s concerns are mirrored by Lydia Chan, an
emerging poet visiting Canberra from Singapore. “I would say I am a fan of hip-hop, but we have to be honest and admit that lots of it is quite derogatory toward women. Poetry does not escape judgment in this regard. It can still be quite accepting of male
sexual violence towards women and this is something that must change.”
Australian poetry is young, a teenager at most,
and seems to be undergoing the painful hormonal changes that adolescent
entities suffer through. This is a time of confusion and torn emotions for
poetry in this country. Perhaps now is the time for Australia to consider
appointing a Poet Laureate; some kind of steady experienced hand designated to
provide a standard. That’s not to say that Australian poetry should solidify
into a specific, unchanging form. Try demanding that of any poet, anywhere, and
see how far it gets you! The suggestion here is that the agreement of a
standard provides a base point from which to measure and calculate innovation
and development of form and style.
The bottom line is that the world is changing
at an increasing speed. Australian poetry might need to pick up the pace a
little to remain relevant in a current context.
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