09 VanNyhuis.pmd tica, realismo proletario,Genevieve Taggard, ABSTRACT PALABRAS su escrituramerece unespacioenlasantologíasdeliteraturaamericanamoderna. ensayo muestralosmaticesestéticosyretóricos delaescritura Taggard yclarificaporqué y elementoscinematográficos,fotográficosmusicales.Dehecho,este cios deestructura híbrida desucolección, to delaestructura dad delaescritura Taggard. Esteensayoreconsideralaescriturade Taggard enelcontex- del discursomodernista.Desdeentonces,loscríticosliterarioshandebatidosobrelacali- treinta delsiglo Las antologíasdeliteraturaamericanahancolocadoalaspoetisaspolíticaslosaños RESUMEN proletarian realism,Genevieve Taggard, KEY spaceinanthologiesofmodernAmericanliterature. writing deserves essay exposestheaestheticandrhetoricalnuancesof Taggard’s writingandclarifieswhyher especially itsframingdevicesandfilmic,photographic,musicalelements.Ineffect,this writing inthecontextofhercollectionpoetry criticshavesincedebatedthequalityof ary Taggard’s writing. This essayreconsiders Taggard’s Muriel Rukeyser andGenevieve Taggard, towards thecenterofmodernistdiscourse.Liter- Anthologies ofAmericanliteraturehave moved femaleprotestpoetsofthe1930s,suchas Nelson’s ting Red: An Anthology ofAmericanting Red: An Anthology Women Writers, 1930-1940 inanthologies. Paula1930s protestpoetry Rabinowitz &CharlotteNekola’s narrated therepression offemalepoliticalpoetsandprominently situated women’s ten by womeninthe1930s.In response, Americanstudies scholarshave insightfully
WORDS GENEVIEVE TAGGARD’S
Anthologies of American literature have marginalized political poetry writ- Anthologies ofAmericanliteraturehavemarginalizedpoliticalpoetry REVOLUTION ANDMODERNAMERICANPOETRY: CLAVE Anthology ofModern American PoetryAnthology : AnthologyofAmericanliterature, modernAmericanpoetry, protestpoetry, : antologíadeliteraturaamericana,poesíaamericanamoderna,polí- XX R EVISTA , talescomoMuriel Rukeyser yGenevieve Taggard, enelmismocentro C 129 ANARIA
DE E Alison VanNyhuis University ofFlorida STUDIOS Calling WesternUnion I NGLESES Calling WesternUnion CALLING WESTERN UNION CALLING WESTERN Calling WesternUnion , 52;abril2006,pp. 129-135 Calling WesternUnion (2000) have moved poetry bysuch (2000) havemoved poetry , revolution. , especialmentesusartifi- 19/05/2006, 12:11 , revolución (1987) and ’s
hybrid structure, . *
Cary Wri-
REVOLUTION AND MODERN AMERICAN POETRY 129 09 VanNyhuis.pmd
ALISON VAN NYHUIS 130 Taggard” becomesa“collective chant,a As Nancy Berke notesinresponse tothecollection’s poem“Mass Song, “poetry, for solidarity vis-à-vissynchronizedoralcommunicationrangingfrom chants tosongs. class Americans.First, theoralverb “Calling” invokes thecollection’s advocacyfor ity andtechnologicaladvancementstocommunicatemore effectively for working Taggard’s spaceinanthologiesofmodernAmericanliterature. writingdeserves devices Verse”; ing WesternUnion Taggard’s writingandmessagesinthecontextof technological,andsocialrevolutions.narratives ofartistic, In reconsidering short, solidarity byconnectingthecollection’s individualpoeticlinesandpoemsintonested Finally, theframingdevicesenactcollection’s advocacyofsynchronization and that ern poetry Taggard associateswithindividualismandsocietalantagonism(31). the collection’s diversion fromtheaestheticsandrhetoricofmore mainstream mod- realities ofworkingclassAmericansinthe1930s. The framingdevicesalsoemphasize media,especiallynewsreelsnew andphotographythatswiftlydocumenttheharsh phasize thecollection’s tiestotheaestheticsandrhetoricofproletarianrealism etry, thetic andrhetoricalsignificancewhenread inthecontextofhercollectionpo- (210). Taggard’s seemingly“bad” and“simple-minded” writinggainsmore aes- “just plainbadwriting” andalsocriticized the“simple-mindedness ofhermessage” herself wrote in inorder toachievethecollectivitygeneratedbysong,foras modern poetry Taggard American Poetry, bates onthequalityofwomen’s writing.In areview ofthe wards thecenterofmodernistdiscourse. The anthologieshave alsopromptedde- writers asMuriel Rukeyser, LolaRidge, Tillie Olson, andGenevieve Taggard to- her suggestionsonthisessay’s Spanish abstractandkeywords. insightful commentsonearlierversions ofthisessay. Iwouldalsolike tothankArleneNaranjo for NOT cinctly alludingtoeffectivecommunicationandorganizationmethodsforworking as “flattering apictureofthebrotherhood aspossible” anditscrusade (13).By suc- of Edwin Gablerin 1883 Americantelegraphersandlinemenusedthetelegraphtogenerate,inwords Strike, thatis,theGreat Strike againstthetelegraphcompany Western Union. In strikes evokesacollectivespiritgeneratedinwhathistoriansrefer toastheGreat
VAIN Calling WesternUnion
and thecollection’s sections,called“Note Books.” The framingdevicesem- exposes thecollection’s aestheticandrhetoricalnuancesclarifieswhy The collection’s title, Three notableframingdevicesorganize thecollection’s verse:thetitle, * IamespeciallygratefultoNora M.Alter, Marsha andSidney Bryant, I.Dobrin fortheir Second, thetitle’s calling“Western Union” duringadecadeplaguedbylabor ”” (46). The collection’s musicalaspectsreflect Taggard’s desire torework Long View 130 for example, ; thepreface, “Hawaii, Washington, Vermont: AFrame forthe The American Telegrapher: ASocialHistory, 1860-1900 (1942), “Song iscollective.(Poetry shouldbe.)”(104). (1936). Calling WesternUnion,
Marjorie Perloff bothdescribed Taggard’s as poetry mass song, Calling WesternUnion “with onerefrain:/ gestures towards usingsolidar- 19/05/2006, 12:11 Anthology ofModern Anthology OUR ’s
framing (1988),
HOPE Call- ’ S 09 VanNyhuis.pmd and enlightenmentorknowledge: backwardness, progress, orignorancetolightnessthatevokesforward-thinking, “Leftward Ho!” forleftistwriterstoldtogowest orleftin bolize conservatism V.F. Calverton’s a reversal oftheeastward movement narratedinthepreface’s titlethatcouldsym- conclusionin“Lark.” lutionary The openinglinesofthecollection’s lastpoemurge Western Union foreshadows thegeographicandmetaphoricjourneysthattake placein and writers,especiallymaleworkers andwriters(Rabinowitz 3,19). whorepresentedGold andCalverton, thewest asapanaceaforAmericanworkers ofthewest thanpromotednuanced portrayal by prominent leftistwriters,suchas In theearly1920s, also signalsthecollection’s rhetoricalandaestheticsimilitudetoproletarianrealism. Strike of1883ontothestrikesragingthroughUnited States inthe1930sand class solidarity, thetitlebothsuperimposesuniquecollectivespiritofGreat ington State, even calling them“barbarians” ( hybridity andcriticizestheracismignoranceofwhitepeoplelivingin Wash- ion’s journey of Taggard, herimmediatefamily, andherancestorsin center” writer(qtd.inMcCann 377), Taggard appropriately narratesthewestward the ‘mine, millandfarm’” in“Leftward Ho!” (3,14)Asaself-proclaimed “leftof nected “the West andtheLeft,inhiscallforintellectualstojoinyoungwritersof and workingclasssolidarity. AsRabinowitz explains,in1932 V.F. con- Calverton States: theunionofwestward geographicmovement withleftistpoliticalprogress photographypublishedinthedepression-era United film,anddocumentary mentary letarian realism by framingtheverseinarecurrent theme ofleftistliterature, docu- ace’s conclusion,“Iamnotconservative” ( last yearsofhislife.In addition, Taggard’s inthepref- emphaticpoliticalassertion from thewestcoastofUnited States totheeastcoastwhere Whitman livedthe Walt Whitman” (2). Then thepoemchartstransference ofawrittenmessage contextsignaledbyitstitle,“Nightinterprets thepoeminepistolary Letterto tarian realistaestheticevenappearinthetitleof publicationthat the samecommunistparty Taggard alsoedited. Traces oftheprole- formin In otherwords, Goldurgedwriterstogenerateahybridliterary/cinematic that describedthelaborprocess‘with technicalprecision’” ism should“create “cinema inwords” through ‘swift action’ witha“social theme” preface. More specifically, Taggard praisesHawaii’s internationalambianceand “Lark” narratesatransitionfromdarkness thatevokes narrow-mindedness, The preface,“Hawaii, Washington, Vermont: AFrame forthe Verse,” also Singing theday-rise,great day-rise. (73) Shock earsandstunoureyes O, Lightnesslikeaspark, O, Larkoflight, O Lark,fromgreatdark,arise! Calling WesternUnion ’s
first poemifoneinterprets “Washington” as Washington stateand 131 Liberator ’s preface reinforces thecollection’s allegiancetopro- editor Michael Goldclarifiedthatproletarianreal- XXXI XVI ), foreshadows thecollection’s revo- Calling WesternUnion. ). Thus thepreface delivers amore
(qtd. inRabinowitz 19) 19/05/2006, 12:11 Calling WesternUn- Calling .
REVOLUTION AND MODERN AMERICAN POETRY 131 09 VanNyhuis.pmd
ALISON VAN NYHUIS 132 modern poetry” (31).Indeed, foretell andjustifythecollection’s from“most aestheticandrhetoricaldepartures order tobuildbridgesbetweenpoetsandsociety. In thissense,theprosenotes tremely different kindofpoetwhodrawsonassociationswiththeworkingclassin from andagainstsociety(31).In addition,theprosenotesadvocateforanex- “romantic” notionsof“godlike perfection” as“poison food” thatsetspoetsapart a notebook’s poems. The firstnotebook’s prosenotescriticize “modern” poets’ begins withanapproximately one-pageprose passagethatintroduces thethemesof layer tothetitle’s proletarianandrealist allusions.Eachofthefournotebooks fered duringthe1930s. in order topromotesolidarityamongpoetsandworkingclassAmericanswhosuf- poetry, orthe lengthylinesof Virginia Woolf’s stream-of-consciousness literature tivism ofPablo Picasso’s cubistpaintings,thedensesymbolismofStéphane Mallarmé photographyandnewsreels thantheprimi- ofdocumentary and thestarkimagery repetitive linesofprotestors’ chants, thesocialthemesofproletarianrealist writing, conducts thecollection’s perspective. In effect,thesepartsof voice-overof documentary narrationor“commentary” thatarticulate Taggard’s presence inthenovel’s adaptation, resemble Marlow’s interjectionsin notes preceding thebooks,andherautobiographicalpreface framingthecollection er’s” first-personinterjectionswithin ters orthetelegraph,derived fromtheGreek roots vancement ofcommunicationintheUnited States (from theprintedformoflet- messagesacrossmission ofrevolutionary theUnited States, thetechnologicalad- ity, (74). great day-rise,”history “The and “great” dayforAmericans. Thus Taggard tomakeherdesired real- usespoetry to “light” anditssparking qualitiesgalvanize theemergentspiritofadesired new the day-rise./Thegreat day-rise” (73-74). The poem’s progression from“great dark” movement allows thepoem’s “believer” andthe“[r]ejoicer” to“arise” andalso“[s]ing conjures thevisualframingof1930s modern framestories,suchasJoseph Conrad’s context ofthecollection.“Frame” impliesan aestheticassociationwithexemplary Frame forthe Verse,” substantiatesanargumentforreading Taggard’s verseinthe ceding the“note books.” nested framingdevices,rangingfrom thetitleandpreface totheprose notespre- in thepreface signalsthat theverseshouldberead inthecontextofcollection’s ofthegeographicalmovementsperformance andpoliticaldevelopments narrated of thesedevelopments forAmericans.“Night Letterto Walt Whitman” and“Lark’s” Greek roots meaning written,tothevocal formofsongorthetelephone,derived fromthe The collection’s sequentiallylabeled“Note Books” addthefinalsignificant Read together, “Night Letterto Walt Whitman” and“Lark” mapthetrans- Even ifthelark’s songdoesnottravelwestward, thesun’s naturalwestward The word “Frame” inthe preface’s title,“Hawaii, Washington, Vermont: A th^le 132 and fwnh@
revolutionary movements.revolutionary , meaningvoiceorsound),andtheenlighteningeffects Calling WesternUnion Heart ofDarkness Calling WesternUnion Apocalypse Now Calling WesternUnion
photographers andfilmmakers Heart ofDarkness th^le or (1979): shares more withthesuccinct
Francis Ford Coppola’s filmed remind readers that Taggard , meaningafar, and 19/05/2006, 12:11 ’s poems, Taggard’s prose
they
function asaform (1899), anditalso . The “speak- grafov , 09 VanNyhuis.pmd and socialdevelopmentsvis-à-visthenewageof“ idolizes selfandverbalornamentationinorder tousherinaesthetic,technological, book. The firstnotebook’s firstpoem,“Funeral inMay,” apoetwho crucifies of organizednarrativeprogressionfrom poemtoandnotebook changes. The sequentialnumberingofthepoems andnotebooksgeneratesasense poral movement andmetaphoricaljourneythroughaseasonripeforrevolutionary geographical locationsinthedepression-era United States, thefirstnotebookdocu- theses, andgrounding thepoemsinconcrete experiences thatoccurinmultiple poem andendinginthelastripedaysoflatesummer, jammingantitheses alongside bare”bright earth (45). against thesevere consequencesofpassivity:we will“see ripenessdecayed/Andthe these answersgiven, theseriesconcludeswith“Flute inLateSummer,” whichwarns and doingaffectthinking,improving theworldwillalsoimprove oneself. With Students” urgespeopletochangetheirattitudestowards theworldbecausebeing economically insuretheirown well-being whenafamilymemberdies.“To My or damagetotheirown andothers’ lives ratherthan sitpassivelyasideandonly Daughter, 1936”encouragespeopletoprotestandfightinorder todiminishharm encourages readerstointerpret poetsandtheirpoems’ answerscritically. “To My tive andadmittedlyquestionablequalitiesofthepoems’ answers,andtherefore, perplexity inthenotebook’s fifthpoemheightensreaders’ awareness ofthesubjec- the poems’ aesthetic,technological,and socialmessages. The speaker’s admissionof movementswriting andexhibitedrevolutionary ofstrikingandmassorganization. shouldempowerrupture peopletoenvisionandideallyenactthesocially-minded ems’ and read Marx instructions alongsidetheir“new” historicalknowledge (4),the narratives circulated bythepowerful.cal andliterary If peoplealsofollow the po- hands and“Break thetightring,”thenpeopleshouldrupture thedominanthistori- History’s” firststanzaurges, achieve thenewbeginningcelebratedin“Funeral inMay.” Way “This We Make tion ofpower from deceivers’ hands(38). book’s Way secondpoem,“This We Make History,” locateschangeintheusurpa- The organizationofthefirstnotebook’s poemsreveals anadvancing tem- By beginninginMay beginningthefirstnotebookwith anew inthefirst The firstnotebook’s remaining poems developtherationaleforenacting If peoplefollow thepoem’s advicetotakepower intotheirown orhistory So huge;hugeasatankorturbine. Take, ohtakeandtransform!(38) Power. Letitgrow safeandleviathan-large May Isuggest?Break thetightring. Take andcreate For centuries.Do youbegintogetme? Have slippedpower aroundtheinnercirclewithawink Now doyou getme?Polished hands,deceptive, clever, adirk,blackpoison,undercoverLike ajewel, ofhands— Take power. Power hasbeenpassed—(Do yougetme?)— In otherwords,Way “This We Make History,” peoplehow to instructs 133 Newsreel 19/05/2006, 12:11 ” (36). The firstnote
REVOLUTION AND MODERN AMERICAN POETRY 133 09 VanNyhuis.pmd
ALISON VAN NYHUIS 134 also bolsterthemeaningsandimagesoffirsttwopoems: ripe now, andthatwillnotbethecaseformuchlonger. changesintheirlives,people desperatelyneedrevolutionary thetimeforchangeis Depression Summer,” reinforces theconcludingmessageoffirstnote book: small vomitinggirlwhoeventually diesintheseries’ secondpoem,“UpState– from malnutritioninthenotebook’s firstpoem,“Mill Town,” alongsideNan, the smelling, andenvisioningthevomitingpregnant mill-motherwhose childdied something different thanthatcontained inanysentence,stanza,orpoem.Hearing, duration ofatone. “note book” andthenotesthemselvessignifybothwrittenword and music in Taggard’s “wail” andthereappearance of “Lark” LelandClarke’s inlentotempowithHenry people” who“wail,” a“class” that“isterribly, terribly, terriblytired” (47). The word ond notebook’s prosenotesfirstadvocate a“forward advance” forthe“mass of tinue spreading ifpower isnotdrasticallyredistributed withintheUnited States. anddiseasewillcon- first notebookemphasizesthatpeoplewillcontinuestarving (4). By documentingthebreadth ofeconomicdisparityintheUnited States, the [Resettlement Administration] andFSA[Farm Security Administration] programs” government housingorthelike—picturesthatdisplayedpositive resultsofRA the Depression ortheDust Bowl” alongside“photographs ofnewlyconstructed W. Brannan show “the down-and-out, usuallydescribedincaptionsasvictimsof photographyofthe1930s,whichinwords ofCarlFleischhauertary &Beverly inthegovernment-fundedaesthetic andrhetoricalstrategiesobserved documen- many peopledispersedthrough theUnited States. In thissense,thepoemsshare ments andgalvanizes changesfor the exigenciesandpossibilitiesforrevolutionary ace amplifiestheexigencies,andtherefore, changes. thepotentialforrevolutionary cated inthenotes(47),andnightmarishsocialsituations presented inthepref- children. The associationofthesethree poemswiththe“forward advance” advo- that unionizing,marching, themasses’ andvotingwilldeconstruct needtowailfor the children” andthefollowing questions,imperative, andexclamation emphasize facts atitscore:ofworkers’ thecynicaldestruction lives” (112);however, (1938), a“collage ofperspectivesandstylesthatreflect onandamplifythebodyof almost bedescribedintermsofNelson’s reading ofRukeyser’s “BookoftheDead” the presentation ofmultipleperspectives andstyles, The concludinglinesoftheseries’ third poem,“Feeding theChildren,” The orchestrationoftheelementswithinsecondnotebookproduces The collection’s momentumcontinuesintothesecondnotebook. The sec- Since The stark visualgapseparatingtherepetitive chantingof“We mustfeed We mustfeedthechildren. Vote thestrike!(55) We mustfeedthechildren. How shallwefeedthechildren? We mustfeedthechildren. March today. We mustfeedthechildren. HaveyoujoinedtheUnion? Calling WesternUnion 134 Collected Poems, 1918-1938 grapples withproletarian realist themesthrough (1938) Calling WesternUnion
exemplify how the“note” in 19/05/2006, 12:11
a pitchor Calling could 09 VanNyhuis.pmd N R more self-consciously constructed thanacollage. more self-consciouslyconstructed photographygeneratesomethingmuch arrangements ofdepression-era documentary zation offramestories,thevoice-over narrationsoffilms,andthesubjects Western Union B G —— F —— “Writing Red: Women’s ShortFiction ofthe1930s.” T P M and therefore, deserves aplaceinanthologiesofmodernAmerican literature.and therefore, deserves counterpointtoandexampleofmodernAmericanpoetry,tions asameaningful minded writersandworkingclassAmericans(31). Thus Taggard’s writingfunc- inorder torenew hopeandreclaimthe courseofmodernpoetry power forsocially- Calling WesternUnion tation withauditory, andformsofrepresentation in abstract,andvisualimagery works, especially that focusonthemultiplemediaatplaywithinthiscollectionand Taggard’s other and photographicformsin project. The multiplestrainsanduniqueconstellationsofmusical,narrative,filmic, movementsment tourgentlyenactrevolutionary generatearichproletarianrealist new mediainitspredominately poeticyethybridstructure anditscandidcommit- LEISCHHAUER ERLOFF ERKE ABINOWITZ AGGARD ABLER ELSON C C Long View. ANN , Nancy. “Anything That Burns You: The Social Poetry ofLolaRidge,Genevieve Taggard, and , Edwin. , Cary. , Marjorie. “Janus-Faced Blockbuster.” , Genevieve. , Janet. “Genevieve Taggard.” In conclusion, Ed. Peter Quartermain California P, 1988. Margaret Walker.” Feminist Press atCUNY, 1987.1-16. Women1930-1940. Writers, Feminist Press atCUNY, 1987.19-29. Women1930-1940. Writers, 1910-1945 UP, 1988. , Paula. “Women Radicalism.” andU.S.Literary , Carl,&Beverly W.B Repression andRecovery: Modern American Poetry andthePolitics ofCultural Memory, New York: HarperandBrothers, 1942. The American Telegrapher: ASocialHistory, 1860-1900. ’s affinitieswiththesynchronizationofchantsandsongs,organi- Collected Poems, 1918-1938 .
Calling WesternUnion. Madison: The Uof Wisconsin P, 1989 135 also exemplifies her statedcommitmenttosignificantlyalter Calling WesternUnion Revista CanariadeEstudios Ingleses . Calling WesternUnion Vol. 45. RANNAN Ed. CharlotteNekola &Paula Rabinowitz. New York: The Ed. CharlotteNekola &Paula Rabinowitz. New York: The WORKS CITED Dictionary ofLiteraryDictionary Biography: American Poets, 1880-1945
Detroit: Gale Research, 1986. , eds. New York: HarperandBrothers, 1936. Symploke. Documenting America, 1935-1943 and ’s
8.1-2 (2000):205-13. exploration ofmusicalformsand invite additionalcriticalreadings Long View Writing ofAmerican Red: An Anthology Writing ofAmerican Red: An Anthology . 37 (1998):39-53. . Taggard’sexperimen- 19/05/2006, 12:11
375-381. New Brunswick: Rutgers .
Berkeley: Uof .
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