I chose to do Latino poetry for this Journal for two reasons: the first one being that during the whole poetry course, we have encountered no Latino-inspired poetry and I wanted to explore a little more of its origins. The second reason being that Mr. Wensman has suggested that I dig deeper into my own Guatemalan experiences, which from my point of view seems a little cliche primarily because that's the identity I've grown up with/around. As a result, my experiences, different culture and way of life seems normal to me, where as to you, the readers, it will be completely new. Therefore, I'm going to give it a shot and see where I will take this next chapter of my poetic writing.
The online poetry journal I found was the Acentos Review, a tri-annual journal that includes 9 poets in each issue. All of these poets have Latino/Chicano roots and most of their writing if focused on Latin experiences. I found that many of the writers focused much of their content on Mexican themes. Perez, is one example some of her writing focused on the struggle that Mexican-Americans face. I found this not only unappealing but my "shields" were immediately put up once I found out what she was writing about. I think that's because from a very young age, us Guatemalans are taught that Mexicans are inferior to us. To a certain degree, it's racist but it's really a cultural thing where both cultures hold resentments towards each other.
Instead, I decided to focus on Roy Guzman's work. From his content, I figured he was from Honduras and there isn't as much social tension between the two countries so I found it easier to actually enjoy his writing. I found that Guzam's style of writing somebodies much of the Latino culture itself. Guzman's lines are longer than most of the other poems we have read so far in class (other than W.W.'s) which reminded me of how Latinos often just talk for hours without stopping, I believe Guzman is attempting to convey this with the longer lines. He includes an overwhelming amount of references to Latino food and slang which he writes in Spanish, and that just adds to the over all ethnicity of the poem. The Spanish words in the poem have such a pivotal meaning in my opinion that without understanding them, and their context, more importantly, it would be hard for a reader to fully grasp the concept of his writing.
So, were you glad to consider this? I don't mean to push your heritage, but I don't think it's cliche to consider it, either. The response to Mexican poetry surprised me, I'm clueless about that dynamic, although it makes as much sense as the MN/Iowa rivalry. Quoting a few lines and digging into them would help here.
ReplyDeleteMarcus, I think it's a good think you took a look at some Latino poetry, especially because a lot of your poetry references Guatemala. I think you could explore some of the things you mentioned in this blog post, such as the rivalry between Guatemalans and Mexicans, cultural differences in Spanish speaking countries, and even how certain words in Spanish cannot be translated to English exactly and use these themes in your poems. I noticed that Roy Guzam wrote mostly in English but incorporated Spanish in his poetry. Perhaps you could try this too. It would add a twist to your Guatemalan inspired poetry.
ReplyDelete