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The Sharpener
Craft: Care more about what a line is than what a poem is.

Craft: Care more about what a line is than what a poem is.

Dickinson, Kunitz, Rilke, Ellington, "Mountainous Black Garden"

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Sean Singer
Jan 30, 2021
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The Sharpener
Craft: Care more about what a line is than what a poem is.
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On August 17, 1870, Emily Dickinson described her physical response to a poem as a epistemic barometer.

I take this to mean that poems are not decorative: they’re a rearrangement of a reader’s consciousness.

Getting up, working, taking care of children, making money, cooking, cleaning, taking out the recycling and trash. . . given all these demands on ou…

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