In regards to the relationship between emotion and perception,
Charles Olson wrote--
and this is all in caps, saying that it's important.
"One perception must immediately and directly
lead to a further perception.
It means exactly what it says, is a matter of, at all points,
get on with it, keep moving, keep in,
speed, the nerves, their speed, the perceptions, theirs,
the acts, the split second acts, the whole business,
keep it moving as fast as you can, citizen."
Olson's quote captures both the speed and the excitement
that characterizes the poems in Ben Lerner's first two books,
The Lichtenberg Figures and Angle of Yaw.
Both of these volumes work loosely with received forms--
the sonnet in one, the prose poem in another.
Each poem is carefully plotted.
There's always a clear, logical progression, fractal-like,
branching away from the general to the very
specific with razor-sharp precision.
Each poem collected in his first two books
is cut, is sort of pasted, to accomplish
everything a great poem should.
They entertain, they please the ear,
but more importantly, they transmit emotion,
and they inform.
It's borrowed from the title of this first book.
Each of his poems is a different Lichtenberg figure,
which is a fern-like pattern that's
generated by high amounts of energy
traveling through insulating material.
But if you go through-- if you follow
one branch of the design, you uncover the poet's thoughts.
Follow another, you'll find yourself immersed in narrative,
and really interesting stuff like taking ice from a hospital
dumpster to build a snowman, or watching as a baby
manages to find and more importantly, strike a match.
Follow another, and you're provided with the lens--
this is most important-- to examine not only yourself,
but also the culture that you live in.
The intricate swiftness of his diction, the musicality
scored through both thought as well as sound,
the energy of his work are all hallmarks
of his gorgeously innovative stuff, where
lyric shifts away from solely existing in the realm of sound,
and finds itself in a realm of thought.
His is a poetry of total perception, perception
in both meaning and music.
Ben has already succeeded in the task which most poets will
never accomplish.
His poems embody the present.
They reflect us, as we are, here and now.
Ben Lerner has published two books of poetry
with Copper Canyon Press.
He received the Hayden Carruth Award
for his first book, The Lichtenberg Figures,
which was also in the Library Journal
as 12 best books of poetry for 2004,
and his second book, Angle of Yaw,
was a finalist for the National Book Award.
His poems have been anthologized in Best American Poetry
and Gertrude Stein Awards in Innovative American Poetry,
as well as having appeared in many other publications.
Ben holds both a BA in political theory and an MFA from Brown.
He is also the recipient of a Fulbright scholarship.
He currently teaches at the University of Pittsburgh,
and co-edits No: A Journal of the Arts.
It's with the greatest pleasure that I introduce
to you one of our country's most exciting new voices,
Ben Lerner.
[APPLAUSE]