tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1055932257464975902.post8894637432656506855..comments2024-03-10T23:01:51.493-05:00Comments on Stupid Motivational Tricks / Bemsha Swing: Short Form: Sonnets and décimas? Jonathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09371893596402673898noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1055932257464975902.post-53384442995475262522014-05-03T05:06:55.832-05:002014-05-03T05:06:55.832-05:00For Calvino, brevity is a virtue in literature (se...For Calvino, brevity is a virtue in literature (see "Six Memos for the Next Millennium"). And his paradoxical example of brevity is Musil's "Man without Qualities". An endless, unfinished novel, but of such great precision that it is actually brief.<br /><br />Or so I thought he said, but it turns out I completely misremembered Calvino's point. I used Google Books to Andrew Shieldshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02804655739574694901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1055932257464975902.post-10111927916949731312014-05-01T18:14:43.688-05:002014-05-01T18:14:43.688-05:00my feeling is that a sonnet's shortness is pre...my feeling is that a sonnet's shortness is pretty relative to the prevailing literary/textual culture. obviously it's easy to make a case for two-line forms or saroyan's 'lighght' or whatever, no matter the context. but once longer verse forms (than, say, a sestina? or roughly a page or two of verse?) fall out of fashion, something roughly the size of a sonnet is the default j.https://www.blogger.com/profile/09002699528461726304noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1055932257464975902.post-39594002430048103312014-05-01T13:49:33.009-05:002014-05-01T13:49:33.009-05:00This will be a collaborative course design. :-)This will be a collaborative course design. :-)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1055932257464975902.post-20854780192329045282014-05-01T13:37:33.120-05:002014-05-01T13:37:33.120-05:00Great idea. I'll steal that one from you.Great idea. I'll steal that one from you. Jonathanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09371893596402673898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1055932257464975902.post-61181310643578915042014-05-01T13:36:09.761-05:002014-05-01T13:36:09.761-05:00I'm doing sonnets for sure because I love them...I'm doing sonnets for sure because I love them and students love them. And I plan to have a discussion as to whether they are short form or not. If the conclusion we reach is that they aren't, we will at least have a great discussion. I was thinking of having a debate where half of the people have to defend the idea that they are and half that they aren't.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com