I know I have discussed it with a couple of you guys, but my final project for this class will put me toe to toe with my enemy yet again. I have decided that I am converting As I Lay Dying into a poem. The reason?
I'm still trying to figure that out myself. Call it literary masochism for the time being. I think that somewhere deep, in the recesses of my innermost soul, I want to enjoy that story. I've read it one and a half times now, providing me with a pretty good gist of the plot. But The book has a natural tendency to make me put it down. It's like badminton; you can only partake in its charms if you're really willing to do it, and as much as I enjoyed the Sound and The Fury, the reason that I am not a diehard fan of Faulkner is because of this book. Barn Burning and A Rose for Emily are tremendous stories, but the disinterest of the book has polarized my literary palette to force me to sit on the fence.
So I will enter the fray, one last time, with my nemesis. If I can successfully find the boundless merit in this story, then I would not have to dread teaching it in the future. I will face my enemy by studying its every move, feature, and technique.I will convert it into an enemy that I can call my friend. A synthesis of Faulkner's composition with my creativity will result in a beautiful product that even a born cynic can love.
It will be a difficult journey. See you all on the other side.
what form of poetry?
ReplyDeleteepic? mock-epic? dramatic?
song-cycle of lyrics?
(or, my most appealing possibility, a backwoods-blue-billy opera ala O Brother Where Art Thou?)
With banjos.
ReplyDeleteand jaw-harps . . .
ReplyDelete