So I had several immediate problems to solve before I would be ready to share new work. No longer able to simply pity me, these readers would have to take ownership of their feelings and reactions.Īnd even more additionally, poets use the materials of conversation for not-conversation, and this makes people angry and confused. If, however, the poems were crafted and framed with intent, then they would be confronted with a piece of art. I realized that if they thought poems were biographically accurate, then they could walk away, knowing I was just a sad little man. They didn’t see the thing, they only saw me.Īdditionally, readers began to ask me if the poems were “true,” by which they meant, “Did they really happen?” which seemed both beside the point and also intrusive. I, personally, was being held responsible, rather than the work-which had the undertone of “poetry isn’t art” because they refused to, or were unable to, understand that I had made a thing. I hadn’t anticipated this response and I wondered about what kind of culpability I might have. You never make me happy, but you can always make me sad, they said. After Crush was published, many people accused me of contaminating their bookshelf or bedside table with my melancholy. Richard Siken: Even before I could attempt to address my concerns about the problems of representation, I had to come to terms with the ramifications of having already made something.

Do these questions of representation have anything to do with the significant length of time between books? This is your first collection in ten years. Peter Mishler: In your new collection of poems War of the Foxes there are lines that express concern about art’s ability to represent reality. The poet’s resistance to answering certain questions-and his generosity in responding to others-reveals a deep respect for his art, which I am grateful that he shared with me. Siken to correspond with me through email to discuss this long-anticipated collection. Pleased to discover that Copper Canyon Press will soon release his second book War of the Foxes, I invited Mr. Since its release, I have turned to Crush many times to take pleasure in the images and voices that populate its poems.

It has been ten years since Richard Siken’s first collection Crush was selected for the Yale Series of Younger Poets.

Crush richard siken book