Poet Michael Palmer
Reads at Hemingway Center

Michael Palmer, who has been called one of America’s most

important poets, gave a reading at BSU’s Hemingway Center

Friday night. After a flattering introduction by members of the

English department, Palmer took the stage. Palmer commented on the

large organ behind him and joked that it was strange to be reading

on a night when he is the alternative to watching the baseball

playoffs or the presidential debate. He thanked the crowd for

choosing him and talked about the changing function of poetry in

society. Palmer said he tries to use poetry to cross political and

linguistic borders while presenting the turmoil of hatreds

confronting one another and the extreme ironies of history.

Palmer, who has been compared to Gertrude Stein and Louis Zukofsky,

uses words to conduct experiments, as if he is testing language and

its power to communicate and function in the world.

Palmer read from his poetry collections, including “The

Promises of Glass” and his highly anticipated book due out in

May. He explained that a majority of his material is drawn from

experiences and interactions with others and gave an example of a

function he attended at Berkeley. Palmer explained that after the

visiting poet at Berkeley gave his reading, Palmer approached and

thanked him. The visiting poet apologized to Palmer claiming that

he knew he was a terrible poet. Palmer’s response, “We

all know we’re terrible poets,” later became the basis

for the poem “Homage.” The poems he read presented

events ranging from his daughter’s experience of learning

language to his work in helping underground Russian poets develop a

voice and respect in their community. If you missed the reading and

are interested in Palmer’s poetry, some of his books are

available at the BSU bookstore.

Michaela G. Herlihy
Culture Writer

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