Tag Archives: language

‘Drawings Are the Great Teachers’

Posted on May 20, 2022 by JMN

… The mark-making basic to drawing is the starting point of so much else: the development of written language, numbers, musical scores. Drawings are the great teachers; they educate the eye and make us more conscious of seeing. They present … Continue reading →

Posted in Quotations | Tagged language, drawing, art | 4 Comments

They Put the ‘Art’ in Partnering

Posted on May 15, 2022 by JMN

Sally Michel (1902-2003) was 17 years his junior when she married Milton Avery (1885-1965) in 1926. A painter herself, she provided income as a freelance illustrator for 30 years while he painted full time. He never had a studio, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Quotations | Tagged art, language, painting | 2 Comments

Cry the Belovèd Reader

Posted on May 10, 2022 by JMN

“Mandible Wishbone Solvent” by Asiya Wadud (Poetry, March 2022). Pass 3 of 3. Previous comment: https://ethicaldative.com/2022/04/25/mandible-wishbone-solvent-pass-1-of-3/https://ethicaldative.com/2022/05/01/mandible-wishbone-solvent-pass-2-of-3/ You. Be. Here. It’s an affirming imperative to exist, or be situate, in the speaker’s space-time. It’s addressed to “tilt” — twice “tender” now … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology, Commentary | Tagged grammar, language, lexicon, personal, poetry, reading, rhetoric, syntax, translation | Leave a comment

‘He Didn’t Get Out Much’

Posted on May 5, 2022 by JMN

For Matisse, the studio was the place where the real world receded, where magic could be made and art ruled. Once he absorbed what Fauvism had to teach him about natural light and pure color, Matisse didn’t get out much. … Continue reading →

Posted in Quotations | Tagged art, language, painting | 4 Comments

‘Mandible Wishbone Solvent’ — Pass 2 of 3

Posted on May 1, 2022 by JMN

Mandible Wishbone Solvent” by Asiya Wadud (Poetry, March 2022). [Previously commented text: https://ethicaldative.com/2022/04/25/mandible-wishbone-solvent-pass-1-of-3/ ] what vaunted green excess enclosed in each skimmed year then the years / vanquished any fuchsia sky / the excess leaking forward filmed aqua / filled … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology, Commentary | Tagged grammar, language, lexicon, personal, poetry, reading, rhetoric, style, syntax, translation | Leave a comment

‘Mandible Wishbone Solvent’ — Pass 1 of 3

Posted on April 25, 2022 by JMN

“Mandible Wishbone Solvent,” by Asiya Wadud (Poetry, March 2022) roped in incremental ghost tens / future tens clairvoyant tens home tens // blue slips beneath the exposed wing / tilt then seam then an angle spent all inside / the … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology, Commentary | Tagged grammar, language, lexicon, personal, poetry, reading, rhetoric, style, syntax, translation | 4 Comments

‘Smidgins’: Afterthought

Posted on April 17, 2022 by JMN

A “smidgin” is an imprecise, tiny amount of something, a modest dollop. As a poem title, the jocular word is self-effacing but also coyly assertive, like a humble-brag. I got dirt under my nails the other day with Rae Armantrout’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology, Commentary | Tagged language, lexicon, personal, poetry, reading, rhetoric, style, syntax | Leave a comment

How Poetry Feels About Itself

Posted on April 12, 2022 by JMN

Rae Armantrout’s poem “Smidgins” fulfills an imperative of lyric, which is “Don’t be gassy.” Also another imperative, which is “Talk in riddles.” My crumpled, wrinkled / blurt / of flesh. // “Let’s face it,” / it says. * … Ravaged … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology, Commentary, Quotations | Tagged grammar, language, lexicon, personal, poetry, reading, rhetoric, style, syntax, writing | 3 Comments

On ‘Love Letter to a Dead Body’

Posted on April 2, 2022 by JMN

I’m intrigued by the tension in Jake Skeet’s [sic] poem: Its title juxtaposes love with death, and its rhythms press against the nettle-like images. The first stanza’s images are scarred and rough with “burr and sage,” “bottles” and the “cirrhosis … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology, Commentary, Quotations | Tagged grammar, language, personal, poetry, reading, rhetoric, style, syntax, writing | Leave a comment

Whomever, Whoever … Whatever

Posted on March 31, 2022 by JMN

A bilateral agreement such as the one proposed between China and Solomon Islands undermines that sentiment and shows a limited appreciation for security of the region as a whole by whomever was the leaked draft’s initial author. (Mihai Sora, theguardian.com, … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary | Tagged grammar, journalism, language, rhetoric, style, translation, writing | 2 Comments