Simple Deconstruction 1 + 2

Simple Deconstruction

We’ve looked at constructs and have learnt, or brushed up on, the basic methods and techniques to assemble stylised poetry in the most fundamental form in accordance with rhythm and meter. Now we move on to deconstruction – despite the immediate suggestion, this is not merely the opposite of what we’ve viewed and discussed in constructs. Perhaps the best way to view deconstruction is prepping – we are more or less preparing what we would use to formulate an intermediate construct.

Simple 1

Imagine a simple scene, such as a location – for the purposes of this exercise I will take a beach. In a fashion similar to brainstorming, form as many observational descriptions as you can, without poetic device at this time, i.e. plain non-figurative language:

Example A – the water shines, the beach bends into the landscape, the sky is blue

Now, reformulate each description by adding poetic device

Example B – the mirror of water, the shoreline is a crescent of sand, the painted blue sky

Take each sentence (or a selection of them, your favourite for example) and arrange them to complete as full a description as you can, change or modify parts to make the product coherent.

Example C – the crescent shoreline of sand against the painted blue sky holds a mirror of water

Use what we learnt in constructs to process this result.

Example D –

the(x) crescent(x -) shoreline(x-) of(x) sand(x) (7)
against(xx) the(x) painted(x-) blue(x) sky(x) (7)
holds(x) a(x) mirror(x-) of(x) water(x-) (7)

The meter here is steady, but uneven, in such cases, rework until it meets your desired effect.

Simple 2

As with Simple 1, imagine a simple scene – use the same if you like – and use simple descriptions in the same way as described. For the purposes of this exercise, I’ll use the same ones as previously used.

Instead of adding poetic device, we’ll substitute the subjects for abstracts.

Example E –

The water shines, the beach bends into the landscape, the sky is blue

Becomes

The mirror shines, the plateau bends into the rigid rock, the awning is blue

As with example C we now need to paste/ assemble these into a coherent phrase

Example F – the mirror shines as the plateau bends into rigid rock beneath a blue awning

Sounds nice, and conjures some nice imagery, but for a reader outside of this process, that imagery is also confused. I mentioned previously that when abstraction enters poetry it requires an anchor to fully benefit the piece and not alienate or exclude the reader. An anchor need not be a literal explanation or ‘in-your-face’ placement of the subject. We can treat the reader as an intelligent person, and inject a hint. In fact, most readers of poetry enjoy the cerebral nature of teasing formulations. All an anchor needs to do is allow the reader into the mind of the poet by way of suggestion or indication of what the abstraction(s) reference(s). In certain circumstances you won’t even need to anchor every individual abstraction, if the entire poem/stanza is a complete thought, one anchor to the main subject is usually enough – if the poem/stanza meanders, then anchor each abstraction. For the purposes of demonstration, I will anchor every individually created abstraction in G1 and use only 2 anchors in G2.

Example G1 – the water’s mirror shines as the sandy plateau bends into the rigid rock of the land beneath a blue awning streaked with clouds

Example G2 – the liquid mirror surface glitters as the pebble stone dusted plateau bends against the coastal rock of rigid land beneath a perfect blue awning painted with streaking white clouds

Take this end product and process as explained in constructs.

Final Example -

as the pebble stone dust plateau
creases inward against the coast,
the rigid rocks of firm land -
the liquid mirror surface
glitters beneath an awning,
striking blue streaked with white clouds.


Simple Combined

I’m leaving tutorial open at this point. Basically, this is the final stage of formulating simple deconstructed works by construct into poems. Take the steps, examples an explanations from Simple 1 and 2 and use what you’ve learnt to combine both deconstruction techniques. You can do this in several ways – either do separate descriptions with separate method ( ie description 1 = simple 1, description 2 = simple 2, etc.), or start with working to the end via simple 1 and then implementing simple 2, or, my favourite method, Simple 2 reworked with Simple 1.

An anchor. Now I know why some of my things made sense only to myself.

Poetry has been far from my mind lately. I hope these sessions will help engage my brain in the right direction.

Thanks Kie.

I hope so too -- no need to thank me, poetry is a gift that keeps on giving.