George often chooses social, critical or political themes for his poetry and always provides an introduction about how he came to write these. I asked him about this and he answered that he doesn't try to explain the poem in a literal sense. He prefers to explain his motivations for the poem, giving the reader more insight into his creative process. He views the intro as a part of the poem in a sense.
George thinks that Blog Poems should be a multi media experience for the reader and his certainly are! I can highly recommend paying him a visit over at Backyard Poetry
So please sit back and enjoy what George has to share about himself and his motivation, which led to writing this excellent poem he has chosen for One Stop Poetry today
~ Claudia
Since I started writing poetry while a student at California State Long Beach in the 1980s, I strived to create poems that were provocative, and challenge the statusquo in society, politics and life. I feel it is the role of a poet to cover all aspects of living, including writing about controversial ,political ,and religious themes; issues that,unfortunately, many poets avoid. I strive to do this in different and unique ways. It could be imagining a tourist ad for a tour of Guantanamo Bay detention camp as in my poem “Guantanamo Bay Tour,” or as in my poem “Ethnic Cleansing” musing about an ad campaign for such practices with the tagline: “Bought and sold wherever intolerance is found.”
One poetry class I took in college, which was taught by noted poet Elliot Fried, really had a lasting impact on me. Professor Fried encouraged us to look for poetry everywhere and in everything around us and to think differently about what could be a subject for a poem. He would give us an assignments where we would have to create poems off the page using video, pictures or images.
My following poem “Would the Crucifixion Have Been Televised?” is one such example of looking for an off beat way to address the troubling state of the TV news business.
I was frustrated and tired with weeks of coverage about the death of JFK Jr. Each year, it seems, the national press, especially the cable and TV networks, become increasingly myopic in their coverage. This is truly reflected during major news events. They feature 24/7 coverage of one event or controversy relentlessly covering every angle. Sometimes that is justified as with 9/11, the Iraq war, or JFK’s assassination other times it is questionable as following the death of Pope John Paul and other overblown stories. It is overkill to say the least.
It got me to thinking about how other historic events such as the Crucifixion might be covered by our modern news industry.
That led to this poem
GP
***
WOULD THE CRUCIFIXION HAVE BEEN TELEVISED?
I wonder if the crucifixion
took place today
would it be televised
non-stop?
Would the plethora of TV cable channels
cover every aspect
of the death
of Christ
on the cross?
Imagine
a press briefing
with Roman officials
explaining their actions.
Think of
profiles on the apostles,
in-depth interviews
with Jesus’ followers
and an exclusive interview
with Judas entitled:
“Why he betrayed Christ: Judas defends himself.”
Ponder the exclusive reports
with those who claim to have witnessed God’s miracles,
including a shocking profile on the blind man
who claims Christ restored his sight.
Or a story on a follower who says to have heard Jesus’ last words
or yet another who saw Jesus walk on water
or still another who witnessed Christ’s resurrection.
That would be followed by
an exclusive feature
on Mary discussing the Immaculate Conception.
This tabloid TV culture
without a doubt would turn the
the Crucifixion
into huge ratings.
All meaning ultimately
lost in the torrent of coverage
nailed relentlessly into
our empty souls and lurid imaginations.
George Pappas
Copyright 2010
