{"id":6929,"date":"2019-08-15T18:45:00","date_gmt":"2019-08-16T01:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/?p=6929"},"modified":"2022-07-22T18:48:08","modified_gmt":"2022-07-23T01:48:08","slug":"meta-poems-too-a-sad-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/2019\/08\/15\/meta-poems-too-a-sad-one\/","title":{"rendered":"Meta poems too"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Layout is the first to go<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lines of poetry are sacred to both the author and the reader. To alter the specific construction in line length is to alter the look and rhythm of the poem. However, as ebooks and eReading devices have become more prevalent, readers have come to expect certain functionality, including the ability to resize the type in order to make it more legible\u2026 This may cause unintended line breaks to occur within the poems. \u2014 Billy Collins in a note to the reader in his ebook: The Rain in Portugal <\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Layout is the first to go
That extra space 
between the lines<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Calibrated<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the meaningful pause
Or maybe just for how 
it looks on the page<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That little tab 
Pushing in the words
Of the fourth line
   Just the right amount<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gone as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is the price we pay
For going the digital way
Ceding the power of font
And design 
To the screen\u2019s mighty sway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And you pay too 
Dear reader
Limited as you are
In what you know
And what the interface
Lets you see.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is there a metaphor here
One wonders
To be exploited 
The mind probes
(As a tongue does
A chipped tooth
Or a finger testing
a scab)
Seeking, a bigger story
maybe, about technology.
And the meanings we make. 
With choices that aren\u2019t choices
Really. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Weighing the gain, potential
Against loss, a certainty.
But maybe it is
Just how things are
And need to be 
If we are, today, 
To read 
poetry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

*****<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bonus Content <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

FYI: A flight of fancy if poems had post-credit bonus scenes (as in the movies).<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This poem comes<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Yes!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With bonus content<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which you can see <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you are patient<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not wishing<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To leave early. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hold on to your, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now warm, drink<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And stale popcorn<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tuck in your knees<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To let people leave <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ones clearly not <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As committed <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As you and me. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The credits roll<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And you marvel<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At all the people <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It took<\/p>\n\n\n\n

– More than a village<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Apparently – <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To make this poem<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than its intent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then finally<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There it is\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bonus content. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though truth be told<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bonus stuff, <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

was oversold.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The offerings <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

They were meager <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even for us, <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ones who were eager <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

All it did <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Was make us wait<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the next poem, <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And ponder its fate. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Layout is the first to go Lines of poetry are sacred to both the author and the reader. To alter the specific construction in line length is to alter the look and rhythm of the poem. However, as ebooks and eReading devices have become more prevalent, readers have come to expect certain functionality, including the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":8843,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6929"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6929"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6929\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8845,"href":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6929\/revisions\/8845"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8843"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punyamishra.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}