Porn by dorothea Lasky
This poem was written to be very intense. I was very surprised that she would be so brave and nonchalant with the name of the poem; "Porn" it caused me to wondering what exactly she would write. Her referencing sexuality was different, I was expecting an erotica poem. Needless to say I wasn't disappointed, she must have a weird fetish with porn to have watched so many different types.
Her last two stanzas about how she will never be in love with a real person only with the people who read has me thinking maybe she was going through a tought time in her life. She must have been inbetween relationships, referencing how people tell her she is free now. Craving the love and attention from another person, this is what must have driven her to write the last two lines. Its true she does have me in her grasp, I am wanting to read more.
-Amanda Acosta
Amanda,
ReplyDeleteI had read this poem while waiting in line at the B&N on the campus before the semester started...it got my attention too because of the title. I agree with you Amanda, she was totally craving love and attention from another person. We all do, and to deny it, like how Lasky does in "Porn", is both defensive and transparent. It also reaffirms my original 'diagnosis' for Donnelly's "Diet Mountain Dew": an expression of how pathetic he felt in his loneliness.
I think that works that are presented to the reader as overtly sexual like Lasky's "Porn" tend to point to a bigger picture, such as that which we mentioned- craving love and attention. Often, I think there's a political context, since porn rules our consumer-driven way of life here in the States and it's just so normal to us. But porn extends past sex. Look at all the sensationalism we're tamed by- notable acts of destruction in the world are sensationalized, even activist movements. Anything to hook us and divert our attention from our hearts, methinks. It all makes me wonder how long we're gonna keep up with avoiding them just to feel cohesive with the rest of the world.
I believe Lasky's work assumes less of a political context, though of course that can always be dissected from anything in our ridiculous many-peopled world. I believe she's admitting to desire for control...not having much sex herself, watching excessive amounts of porn, breaking the fourth wall (and doing so just to admit she has the reader wrapped around her finger)...anything to assert herself from a distance, pretty much. Her tone is passive but also complacent- at least that's how I read it. Among other things, keeping ourselves distanced from others helps us convince ourselves we need less than we really do. I won't get into it, but I understand control as a defense.
-S
When flipping through the pages of this book I came across this poem as well and was like woah, I wonder what this will be about. I also thought it was going to be a sensual poem but to my surprise, it was more of the emotions of the author and her outlook on porn. I think when she was writing this poem she was coming from a place of hurt and it drove me to question if she has ever been assaulted because the type of pain that she speaks of seems to be on a deeper level. The concept of watching porn is so taboo and not spoken of and to me, it has a lot to do with how we perceive sexuality the freedom one has within their sexuality. Many people learn how to perform in the bedroom through porn but truth is that its a movie? in the end and they are acting and exaggerating emotions. The author also goes to speak about why she watches porn and I think writing this poem was an outlet from the grip that porn has on her. This is also can be an intoxicating feeling for her as she has a grip on her readers wondering what her poem is about when they see the bold title Porn.
ReplyDeleteThese are all great responses!
ReplyDeleteI would like to point out what is probably already obvious to all readers: Not only is this poem written by a woman writer, but all three responses so far are from women. I wonder if we can talk about the role that gender plays in this poem. I was struck w/ both Sumaiya and Amanda's prediction that the poem would be sensual/erotic. It's definitely sensual, but probably not in the way that you both predicted. This is interesting for several reasons: One, it points out the work of titles (and why they're so important). But second, it also shows how words can have multiple means. Who is the main audience for porn (the product not the poem). Answer: heterosexual men. It's true that this is a small amount of porn that is marketed for het couples and/or women (also for gay men and women, essentially anyone). But the massive amount of porn that is created and consumed by our society is for heterosexual men (this is not my opinion; there are many academic studies which have shown this--google it). How does the author's gender affect your reading of the poem? How does your gender affect your reading of the poem? (How is the poem about poetry?)
I think that there is this whole stigma that porn is for heterosexual males and well that might be true;I think that the author is trying to point out the fact that she is a woman who also watches porn and might even enjoy it. Women have been put to bottle up there sexuality and this poem is kind of going outside of the box to normalize the fact that women are also sexual beings that have wants or desires. When it come to gender I think that hetero-males in society have it a lot easier being open about their sexuality. They get props for the amount of women they sleep with and what they do but when the roles are reversed women are looked at as whores.
Deletewhen reading this poem i was also surprised because I too thought it was going to be sensual poem. Reading the poem made me also wonder if the author has been sexually assaulted because of the way she describes herself crying because the men look like her ex-boyfriend,boss, monster,etc make it seem she's writing from hurt.
ReplyDeleteThe interesting aspect of this poem, for me, was the emotions expressed in the second stanza. In pornography, the male figure is almost always beheaded, void of identity and utilized for one purpose. Here, the author points out that the man in Divorce Party looks like various men in her life: her ex boyfriend, half brother, and boss. All of these people, to her, are monsters in some way, shape or form. Someone who left her in the dark or darkened her as a person.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Amanda, I don't believe the author is referring to her own freedom in the first stanza. Instead, she notes that the actress (or the character portrayed by the actress) is not free by being in a porn movie (similarly and separately from the author herself, who exists separately from the movie, but trapped in her own sort of porno).
In response to Prof. Talbird, I definitely agree with the aspect of audience. My question would be what would the general response of the audience be among male, female, and differently gendered people when they see the title? Would we see a similar response from the audience of true porn or some shift?