Poet Pollitt reads verses to students

New York City poet Katha Pollitt gave a reading of her work on campus yesterday afternoon, taking time between poems to explain her inspiration. Pollitt, who has had her work published in several national magazines, including The New Yorker, began her hour-long reading with a brief introduction to each of her poems. She explained what inspired her to write them and how she selected the language in each one. Many of the 25 poems Pollitt read dealt with her childhood memories. She said she is often inspired by things in her daily life which remind her of things from her past. Poems such as "In Memory", "Mandarin Oranges", "Playground" and "What I Understood" came from such memories. Many of these childhood poems have sad themes, such as lost childhood, unhappy recollections of her youth and solitude. Despite Pollitt's nostalgic approach to poetry, most of her works deal with serious subjects -- feminism, "lives of quiet desperation," sex and love. "Lives of the Nineteenth Century Poetesses," another one of the poems Pollitt read, explains how many women poets of the time did not gain deserved recognition because of sexism and lack of opportunity. Pollitt added that the poem's title created some controversy because of the word "poetesses." She said critics argue that the word "poetess" conveys a sense of amateurism, sexism and inferiority. However, she said she used the word because it accurately describes what she wanted to illustrate -- a female who writes poetry. Most of the over 25 people at the reading said they found Pollitt's poems very enlightening. "I enjoyed it," said Comparative Literature graduate student Geoff Brock. "A lot of people think poetry is for an elite group," said College sophomore Laura Appleman. "If you go to one of the many readings, you'll see it's for everyone. It's a common denominator."

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