Slam Poetry

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   Evviposted 12 years ago

   What is everyone's opinion on slam poetry? 
   I am in a class where we are focusing mainly on poetry as a form of resistance and a large section of the class has been focused on slam poets and how they are the highest form of resistance.  But I'm not sure if I fully agree that they are the ONLY form of resistance in poetry.  What say you?
   -Evvi, a newbie to hubpages

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      couturepopcafeposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I think a lot of the world's beauty forms in response to a wound.  Often poetry is written around some emotion - love, rage, hate, fear, rejection - any of which can spur the poet.  Slamming, by definition, is live poetry performance.  It is only different from written poetry in that way.  The resistance part is not exclusive to slam.  So I guess I agree with your take that it is not the only form of resistance poetry.

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   Jaggedfrostposted 12 years ago

   What type of resistance are we talking about Evvi?

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   2uesdayposted 12 years ago

   I do not think slam poetry is the only poetry form that is about resistance, although having a definition of what is considered resistance by the group mentioned would help answer this.
   
   
   As I believe slam poetry is a fairly modern concept believing that  slam is the only form of resistance poetry might be like saying nobody in the past ( prior to slam) wrote poetry objecting to anything.

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   couturepopcafeposted 12 years ago

   2 - that's exactly right.  The beat generation of the 50s who wore only black and recited poetry in dark smokey coffee houses were all about rejecting the status quo, as were the hippies, punks, rappers, et al.  Pop artists were striking out against the traditional government structure and fluxus followed closely on its heels taking objects completely out of context with their world as a representative way of defying leadership, particularly those who juried art.  Poetry is just another art form which, in every generation, has its rebels, those who want to break away, deny the current condition or create a new one.  Slamming, essentially, is not new.  It's just poets reciting their poems from memory.  The method of delivery is a bit faster today, I think.

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   The Suburban Poetposted 12 years ago

   I'd say "Howl" was a form of resistence... as I'm sure ya'll know there was an obscenity charge brought forward (I believe he read it aloud at City Lights Book Store in SF) which ultimately was defeated.

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      couturepopcafeposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      There are a few "Howl" poems.  Who's the author?

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         The Suburban Poetposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Allen Ginsberg

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            couturepopcafeposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            I found a poem by Daniel Partlow titled "Howl Allen Ginsberg".  Yes, indeed, I would say resistance poetry for sure.  Where was the obscenity?

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               The Suburban Poetposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               It's a long poem but I believe there is profanity and somewhat graphic (for the 50's) references to sex including homosexuality....

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                  couturepopcafeposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  Do I have the correct poem?  If it was written in the 50s it makes a big difference.

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   china manposted 12 years ago

   Slam poetry is just the loudest form of resistance poetry.  song lyrics used to be so until they became 'unpatriotic' and any singer beaten into obscurity, there is a fair degree of resistance among everyday poetry but normally more oblique and deep.

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   anderson213posted 12 years ago

   I'd say slam poetry has alot of resistence but then again i think that placeing that term also creates a stigma or sterotype that all slam poets or urban poets or spoken word poets(whatever term you prefer) are all unpatriotic rebels without causes or anarchist which is not always the case.

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   pennyofheavenposted 12 years ago

   Any one got a link/can point to a slam poet/poem? Being a newbie I don't know these terms? I learn something new everyday!

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      anderson213posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I got you http://hubpages.com/hub/i-cry-out-to-be-heard
      
      im not premoting my "hub" its just to give an example
      hope it helps

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         pennyofheavenposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Wow thats expressive stuff! So slam is a no holds barred kinda thing.... I am still gathering my thoughts on it?

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   anderson213posted 12 years ago

   Well yeah it is but it has a more urban feel to it it has a flow more than a rhyme if that makes sense

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      pennyofheavenposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Yes that makes sense. Flow. What does urban mean though?

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         anderson213posted 12 years agoin reply to this

         and urban like the same way tht rap is considered urban because it was more or less started in the citys or that the idea anyways

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            pennyofheavenposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            Ok cool! Thanks for the lesson!

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    anderson213posted 12 years ago

    to add to my last post its kind of gritty grungy its a type of poetry that you can't be afraid to 'go there' 'say that' or offend anyone

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    2uesdayposted 12 years ago

    I think I just discovered that some of the poems (the ones that I write but that I do not share) are probably a type of resistance poetry. If resistance is passing comment on the state of the world or the problems you have encountered, they (mine) tend to be written on topics that I have no power over but need to comment on.
    
      This has been an interesting forum post to read.

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