Topic Analysis“Listening is paying attention simultaneously to what is present and what is absent.” In “Understanding the Sound of Not Understanding,” Jed Rasula analyzes the impact of the spoken word on understanding poetry. Historically, poetry and most literary forms began as an oral tradition. They have been sung by beards in various cultures. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayThe very notion of poetry, which originates from the ancient Greek poiesis meaning "to create," has always implied a way of structuring sound to create meaning. However, actual sound in poetry is undeniably the most overlooked aspect of this art form. The convention has long been to study what the poem “says” and to ignore the layers of meaning added when spoken aloud. In poetry analysis, the sound pattern is mentioned sporadically and is not developed as many scholars focus on the physical text itself. Another aspect of sound in poetry that does not appear frequently is the connotations associated with sounds. The poet's rhyme, alliteration, or pronunciation are associated with understanding the message, however, evaluating the sound as one's own regularly falls between the cracks. In the 20th century, modern artistic movements such as Dadaism or Surrealism sought to push the boundaries of our understanding of art. Sound poetry is an effect of modernism in the sense that it is a clear rejection of the “need for meaning,” while seeking to return to its purest roots as an oral art form. Rafael Barreto-Rivera, member of the Four Horsemen describes Sound Poetry as "poetry that has its basis in the non-verbal, vocal and subvocal elements of sounds". These poems are generally difficult to explain since their interpretation is based on sensitivity rather than sensible reasoning, and the “liveness” of the performances is crucial to achieving any kind of understanding. If you read one of the "scores" of the Four Horsemen, it would be almost impossible to grasp its meaning. Some disagree that sound poetry needs to be wordless to show the prevalence of sound over text. Robert Bringhurst, a poet known for his linguistic clarity, writes a remarkable performance poem “The Blue Roofs of Japan: A Score for Interpenetrating Voices” in which the live performance surpasses the text. The poem is written as a two-voice jazz duet reading two parts, overlapping, synchronized and spoken individually. The result is an apparent disconnect from written words and a focus on the cadence of ideas dancing around each other. Because both speakers read different, sometimes overlapping lines, discerning each word is too complex for any audience. The listener must free himself from fixation on tangible explanations and experience the performance intuitively. The peculiarity of the overlapping speakers in the poem “Blue Roofs in Japan” posed a challenge to the editors of Barbarian Press in 1987. Considering that the poem was intended as an oral piece, conveying simultaneous voices without interrupting the flow of the reading, it encountered some obstacles. Bringhurst suggested printing the left voice in a darker color and having the right voice behind it in a lighter color. The result was a confusing “muddy mess” as the publishing house points out. After some trial and error, they manage to reach a consensus by printing both entries side by side on the same page, each written in bold with the other text lightly shadedbehind. This allowed the speakers to read uninterrupted and follow each other's lines. In the interest of hypothesizing the aforementioned additional effects of performance as opposed to text, it is appropriate to conduct a critical listening of the poem prior to critical analysis. . The opposite would be less impactful as the public would already be aware of the themes and would have preconceived expectations. Although it would be interesting to note how the sounds of the spoken piece vary depending on the interpretation of a person who is already familiar with the text. The mere fact that this poem is meant to be listened to because it contains "score" in the title suggests that performance is the author's primary intent. Music and poetry are regularly compared to each other as they both rely on rhythm, intonation or accentuation of stress. Both aim to influence the listener subconsciously. The Bringhurst poem is a five-part lyric poem as it is an expression of emotional impressions, inner experiences. One could argue whether it is a dramatic poem as it has two voices that seem to respond to each other, however, the melodic melody and the implication that both voices function "as one" would lead one to assume that it is the same speech from different angles. Lyric itself involves a lyre accompaniment, further related to music. Over time, opera and music dissociated into distinct art forms. Music is routinely examined by the way in which the unity of the instrumental score and the text contributes to a greater understanding of the piece. Sound poetry similarly relies on abstract sounds or words and cadence working cooperatively to invoke a feeling. When you start reading the poem, you can hear a soft female voice but it is soon slightly drowned out by a louder male voice that takes command of the rhythm. The softer voice becomes a sort of echo that reflects and sometimes contradicts the other. The idea of ​​interpenetrating voices would lead to the staccato interposition of contrasting ideas. Having two speakers leaning on each other would suggest extensive rehearsal and almost mechanical reading. “The Blue Roofs of Japan” manages to infuse a melodic legate of sound. The voices appear to represent an Inyo waltz (The Way of Ying and Yang in Chinese Taoism). Taking into account the title's reference to Japan, it could suggest the Japanese syncretism of beliefs and observation of nature. Inyo is the representation of totality, which embraces every aspect of life. The concept of good and evil does not fit into this ideology. Both components are often represented as Female and Male, or Darkness and Light. This furthers the speculation that the two voices in the poem are two sides of the same coin as nothing seems to compare with the other but flow into each other more easily. The more prominent voice does not so much lead as describe a mirror position to the softer voice which is not subdued but rather elusively evocative of the same idea. Although the voices are not always intelligible, some words are repeated and generate themes, even if the sentences are not clear. Many of the themes revolve around nature and especially “water”. Water is a recurring symbol in most cultures, but in Japan the purifying powers of water transcend all religions. It is customary for Shinto practitioners to wash before praying to the Kami (various gods who inhabit lakes, trees, mountains or any natural phenomenon). This purifying power of water is also found in Western cultures, perhaps creating a deep connection to Bringhurst. The motif also illustrates the flexible quality of water and its dual meaning. The water is thereat the same time a source of life and a source of destruction to which poetry alludes by referring to its multiple forms and underlining repetitions or dragging the words with long trains. It should also be noted that water is the most adaptable element and is commonly associated with empathy. Poetry is sensitive and highly emotional when heard. The cadence and swirl of the round sounds are reminiscent of synchronic ripples in still water. Poetry's extraordinary ability to arouse a range of emotions and meanings without understanding the actual content makes a strong argument in favor of sound poetry. The lack of musical instruments seems like nothing and does not impede the musicality of the spoken word alone. Indeed, the constant recurrence of lively consonantal alliteration and soft vowel alliteration balances the piece. Similarly, the use of explosive sounds (p,t,bed) and nasal-sounding consonants (n,m) convey happiness and melancholy respectively. At first glance, the dual entries appear to be competing to be at the forefront of the page. Bold lines overlaid on the lighter ink behind sometimes become blurry and difficult to read. The verses are predominantly observational texts, inferring the poet's state of mind when he comes into contact with these experiences. Though for the most part, the poem vividly describes outdoor scenery such as "the river marched through the Chinese grid / of the city, not twisting but turning / sharp as a sectional road / across the Saskatchewan prairie." It is important to note that the emphasis is on the speaker's perception and experiences of it. This is effective when you finish the poem ultimately understanding a much broader, and perhaps universal, resonance with nature and all its relevance on a larger scale than life. This is reminiscent of Percy Bysshe Shelley's suggestion that poetry “removes the veil of familiarity from the world and lays bare its naked sleeping beauty and wonder.” The tone of the poem is meditative as the speakers reflect on the scenario. It reads almost like a train of thought or a daydream brought on by the wonderful views. The flow of water through the lines reinforces this interconnectivity from one place to another. The entire second part of the poem embodies this journey of water and art. The left voice begins with "This music is all about water" and the right voice simultaneously says "This music is water, this water is music", reflecting slightly with the two universal symbols of communication, further suggesting this connection of everything . the third and fourth parts of the poem are a little less fluid and more grounded as they revolve around the structuring of nature and man to create art. However, the elements highlighted are the idea that art comes from the earth ("Writing is planting") and is prior to any artificial construction since Art has always existed in the cosmos. The fourth section briefly comments on the vain ambition of the artists and invites us to stop and take a minute to listen, to get in tune with everything that surrounds us. Rasula also makes this one of her primordial points when she discusses the differences between “hearing” and “listening”. His first distinction is made when he explains that “Listening is an act of attunement—.” This draws a direct parallel to Bringhurst when he writes “Listen: this music/ is all about the water. The words/ are the earth, and the music/ is the water.”. Both insist on taking the time to focus on what they hear to glean as much as possible from the experience. The fourth part concludes with a reminder that “The languages ​​of the gods do not include/have no dates and no names./This is the logo.”. The right voice doesecho of “THIS is the logos” which leaves the listener or reader with the same feeling of emptiness. This void is not reduced to nothingness for the sake of effect, but rather creates an intense moment of recognition of our smallness. The last section closes the journey by telling all four elements and how they work in harmony and the story of man that began in water. Bringhurst talks about “Water and land: what binds us together/keeps us apart” which alludes to the natural boundaries of nature that separate us and yet have in common. When the right speaker directly follows this with the ghostly “What keeps us apart / is what binds us together.” insinuates man's greed towards nature and the constant struggle for power, without realizing that this land is to be shared and grateful for. The poem ends with the note “Turn to the sky, be still, wide and blue”, taking us back to the blue roofs mentioned at the beginning. The journey began with the concrete man-made object and took us across the world, then time and ended with the silent infinity of the sky. Although this poem can be read, the written themes match the sounds when spoken. However, one has to wonder why the sounds, when heard, evoke the feelings conveyed by the poem without a logical reference to the words. The experience of performing vocals evokes myriad associative expectations. Content is often difficult to extract immediately from highly personal lyric poems. Words have different connotations depending on personal background, context, personality, etc. of the person, while the feeling is instinctive. Our relationship with sound is formed in the womb and our relationship with language is formed in early childhood. Many scientists have studied the effects of music on the fetus and concluded that the processing of the tonal key begins. Music perception relies on cognitive abilities to decode emotional meaning. Our very perception of language is colored by different experiences ranging from similar to very different, but humans develop their first contact with the outside world through sounds. The voice is the initial tool of communication and newborns make sounds to express hunger, discontent, joy, etc. As children age, they associate sound with tone, tone with meaning, and finally meaning with understanding. Once this happens, sound becomes a much less noticeable aspect in connecting ideas. It seems unlikely, however, that we will abandon that instinct, which in turn helps us understand how we can gain so much from listening to sound poetry. Sidney Lanier, studying sound and its perception, discovered that "when formal poetry or verse... is repeated aloud, it is impressed on the ear as verse only by means of certain relationships existing between the words that compose it considered purely as sounds, without reference to the ideas associated with them." This is simply Lanier's recognition that sound invokes instinctive interpretations regardless of the logical definition of the words themselves. Darwin also theorized about sound association and suggested that "Imitation by articulate sounds of musical cries may have given rise to words expressive of various complex emotions." Experiencing an unfamiliar oral piece for the first time tends to lead audiences to pursue their own enjoyment through becoming familiar with the written text and possibly the author's other works, or feel so disconnected from the piece that they let it go completely. As Rasula points out, “When sound and sense come together, the sound makes the “sense” senseless, or precariously perceived because it is overloaded, as if everything it means…