I discovered this “poet” (and actually a brilliant comedian) Amanda Gorman today. Obviously, I didn’t watch the Superbowl but somebody posted her performance on Twitter, and it’s extremely funny.
Do look her up. She’s a perfect illustration for our discussion of postmodernism. It’s all completely meaningless but you can’t deny that it’s funny. Whether it’s meant to be funny is unimportant. Is anything ever meant to be anything? What’s more important intention or perception? Or is the only point of existence to have a good laugh? These are very postmodern questions.
It’s like Seinfeld. It was truly a show about nothing but everybody watched. The characters constantly discussed how it was a show about nothing. And that was the joke.
Gorman and Seinfeld had the same audience, too. It’s kind of heart-warming to see that nothing changed in 30 years.
As for the Superbowl, I hope your team won. 🥳🎊🎉🏈🔴
Clarissa's Blog 
I checked out the Super Bowl poem after reading your post. Just like with her inauguration poem I found it really cringey.
America is turning into a proper regime. Regimes love poems talking about regimes and their struggles. The socialist regime in Poland had quite a few poets on the the payroll and the poems were recited at every occasion. Other than soccer matches of course. No one would even dream of soiling those events with propaganda. Sports was the only truth one saw on TV back then.
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Yes, I don’t remember this kind of thing at soccer matches in the USSR. Sport did offer some respite to the spectator, if not to the athlete.
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“Poland had quite a few poets on the the payroll and the poems were recited at every occasion”
Isn’t that how Wisława Szymborska (later Nobel prize winner) got her start?
She later denounced her early pro-party work but some crazy nationalists can’t forgive things like the cringey “Ten Dzień” (That day) about the death of Stalin… with such immortal lines as:
Czy to ranek na oknami, mroźna skra
tak oślepia, że dokoła patrzę łzami?
Czy to zegar tak zadudnił sekundami.
Czy to moje własne serce werbel gra?
My quick and not very elegant translation…
Is it morning on the windows, the frosty shine
that blinds me so I look around through tears?
Is it the clock it’s loudly ticking gears.
Is it my heart beating like a drum in time?
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Funny you mention Wislawa. When Amanda was reciting her social justice poem at the inauguration I thought about Szymborska. I’m sure they will give Amanda Gorman a Nobel Prize in the next few years and she will not even be required to write good poetry like Szymborska did later in life.
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What’s Amanda Gorman ? Is that for real ?
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