Week 13

I do not think I fully understand what elliptical poems truly are. According to one of the definitions of the word elliptical, it is "of or relating to extreme economy of oral or written expression" and it is "marked by deliberate obscurity of style or expression." To me, this is what all poetry is: using just the right words to express something that is not overtly evident at first glance. It is about deeper meaning and, intrinsically ,an economy of language. I understand how this definition applies to the poems that are considered "elliptical", but I also think that these poems are not exclusively that. They are a weirder, more confusing version of that from other poems. Basically, I don't like the definition and I think it is elevating this form of poetry to an overvalued state. In general I find them unappealing. I'll now look further into the example Hoagland gives of an elliptical poem, Louis Aragon's "Pop Tune."

Aragon's "Pop Tune" is actually easier for me to grasp than some of the other elliptical poems that I have come across in trying to figure out what the hell they are. I think I like it more than those others because it is actually dealing with an emotional thought, with a severe topic; therefore, even though it is following the detached form of an elliptical poem, it is decidedly attached to a serious human concern. Where I find this poem elliptical is in its lack of punctuation, which leads to a difficulty in placing yourself and determining who is speaking. But in general, the progression of the poem makes sense. This is something I think other "elliptical" poems seem to lack.