Kurt Malkames - weekly blog

Pretty standard week in poetry so far. In terms of my last assignment – I really enjoyed working within a set structure. I decided to use a take on the Oulipo N+7 method. Instead of a standard dictionary I used the Dortland Medical Dictionary (27th ed.). Also, I decided to use the word that was closest alphabetically to the word I replaced. If I went 7 down like the N+7 method it tended to destroy the rhythm and beginning sound of the word. The poem that was created was quite interesting. Half of it turned out to be kind of funny weird stuff and the other half turned out to be complex medical jargon that did not fit in the least bit. Examples would have been something like “I went to the gubernaculum”. The poems that I mixed these crazy words with was a super-traditional Chinese poem from centuries ago. The forms clashed tremendously and it was a complete disaster – or maybe it was a complete success. Ill admit that it was funny to read once it was done so maybe Ill go towards the end of being a success if it can make other readers laugh as well.