Stereotyping – much easier than THINKING

In a complex, bewildering world, it is so much easier to avoid really thinking about issues that cause us concern by applying a label, a hook, a short-hand that conveys the meaning instead. Unfortunately, this leads to stereotyping, which in turn can take hold in the collective psyche as established fact, when it is no such thing. The effort of questioning what we are told becomes unnecessary, superfluous, redundant as the stereotype shapes our opinions and takes the place of any rigour of thought - it’s all been done for us, to save us the bother!

Stereotyping leads to casual racism, writing off whole religions as terrorists, swallowing lies put out by ruthless political propaganda machines, turning on vulnerable, defenceless minorities, stigmatising sufferers of illnesses or conditions, lynchings. And all because of our inability to think beyond a narrow framework prescribed by those who wish to control us.

Here’s a little poem I found that illustrates the point, in its own pithy way.

Adjectives

Lemons must be zesty
and
smorgasbords veritable.

Soldiers must be brave and young.

Families are all hard working,
and immigrants scrounging.

The words Muslim and terrorist are filed too close in the western lexicons.

I bought a lemon today.
I sliced it in two.
It was dry,
full of pith.

By Adrian via allpoets.com

Thank you for reading,

Sheilagh

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Purpureus Pannus

There is a tendency to assume that poetry is a patch of expensively dyed purple cloth, significantly different to the plain shades of everyday language. However, it is this falsehood which sees many new poets (and even those of experience) create work which fails the poet, the poem and the reader. Therefore, I thought I'd examine some of the 'techniques' which, if used excessively and without caution, could cause your poetry to become a little bit too purple.

Complicated Words:

Poetry isn't about replacing ordinary words with those that are more extraordinary, complex or lengthy, yet with a quick right click or a flick through a thesaurus this dangerous and misguided edit is fairly easy to implement.

Adjective & Adverb Strings:

There is nothing fundamentally wrong with adjectives and adverbs, but rather the risk is encountered when they are either used excessively or in a string. Poetry is about being concise, thus to have a string of four adjectives or adverbs - which fail to offer more than the singular modifier - is superfluous, and potentially a step towards making your poem wordy, even purple. For example,

His strong, pungent, heady scent...

           

The swan eased quietly, nervously and slowly through the water...

Purple Substitutions:

This tends to occur through a fear that normal is boring, unimaginative and not poetic enough, thus prompting the poet to substitute for a word or phrase that sounds less common. However, the problems arise when a) the substitution has been made so frequently by others it has almost achieved the status of cliché, or  b) because the substitution is too obscure and thus results in distracting or confusing your reader. An example of each would be:

a) 'red' becomes 'crimson blood'

b) 'heart' becomes 'abrasive organ pumps'

            (from a poem recently published in Maire Claire by Kristen Stewart)

Figurative Overkill:

Before my Creative Writing MA I used to do this excessively. I would place similes and metaphors wherever I could fit them, and yet with each one added the meaning and purpose within my poems was diluted rather than strengthened. I finally realised that one well-placed, well-timed simile / metaphor could illuminate a poem far better than ten -  that less can be more striking and surprising than more.

*          *          *

To illustrate my overall point I have 'purpled up' William Carlos Williams' poem This Is Just To Say (well-known for its brevity).

   

This Is Just To Say

I have devoured greedily

the blushing purple plums

that were residing in

the arctic Eskimo drawer  

and which

 you were probably

 saving patiently

 for morning's first meal

Forgive me, absolve me

they were divinely delicious

so seductively sweet

and so cold like winter

Thank you for reading,

Lara 

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Gagging Order

By Ashley Lister

Q: What do you call a fish with three eyes?

A: a fiiish.

I used that gag in an English class I was teaching this week. I used it for three reasons.

1) It’s a good gag so it deserved to be aired.

2) I wanted to get the class relaxed and bonded and I knew the communal groan from that one would help them start working together.

3) It simply and effectively illustrates a disparity between spelling and pronunciation that is often the cause of most difficulties with written communication. From this springboard I was able to discuss sound/spelling anomalies and even able to tangentially link the subject to homophones.

Using gags in the classroom is one of my guilty pleasures.

Perhaps part of this is relatable to having a father who worked on the stage as a stand-up comedian. Aspirations to emulate parents can form deep-rooted motivating forces.

Or maybe it’s because I desperately crave the affirmation of laughter? Hearing people laugh with me suggests I’m liked and indicates I have met with societal approval. Perhaps I crave that? What do you think? Please write something nice in the comments boxes below to let me know which you think it is. Please.

Q: What’s long brown and sticky?

A: a long brown stick.

Again, this one gets aired in the classroom for three reasons.

1) It’s funny.

2) A class that is laughing together will work better together and achieve communal goals more easily: an opinion supported by Banduras’s ideas on Social Learning Theory, Reciprocal Determinism and Social Cognitive Learning.

3) Again, it simply and effectively illustrates the mutability of word classes with the differentiation between ‘sticky’ as a verb (meaning something to which things can adhere) and ‘sticky’ as an adjective referring to the identifiable qualities of a stick (which is then shown in the punchline in its noun form).

Cracking gags is one of many guilty pleasures in which I indulge. And, if there’s anyone reading this who feels willing to share a gag in the box below, please rest assured that the good and clean ones will be stolen and shared with deserving classes.

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