Customer Reviews

Rebel Angels: 25 Poets of the New Formalism

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This is a fine riposte against the free verse orthodoxy that has dominated the thinking of lazy academicians and hipsters for decades. How many ignorant sneers from these "fundamentalists" have I heard over the years? Hey, if you can't write a good sonnet or villanelle yourself, don't knock those who can. And if metrical poetry ain't your thing, great--it's a big world--plenty of free verse for those who want free verse. The idea that formal verse ever disappeared, however, is something of a myth (perhaps self-serving in the case of the so-called "New Formalists"). Strong metrical poets have appeared in every generation of American poets, from Robinson and Frost to Ransom, Francis, Winters, and Cunningham to Nemerov, Wilbur, and Hecht. Also, many acclaimed contemporary free verse poets started off writing formal verse (e.g., W.S. Merwin, James Wright, and Adrienne Rich). It's out there, and it always will be, because the challenge of it will always engage some writers--although few will ever be up to it. Of those poets born in the 40s and 50s collected in this volume, the most outstanding seem to me to be Timothy Steele, R. S. Gwynn, and Dana Gioia. The anthology is uneven but it provides an excellent introduction to contemporary verse that should send the reader off in search of collections by the best individual poets. (If you want a really scathing attack on academic orthodoxy, check out Gwynn's _Narcissiad_.)

"Rebel Angels" showcases many contemporary poets who may be praised for working in traditional forms in an up-to-date idiom, but who may also be chided for inefficient workmanship. Meter and rhyme, as Dana Gioia has pointed out, have been in decline for decades. The New Formalist poets have made a valiant effort at reestablishing meter and rhyme, but unfortunately their own competence in traditional forms is in some question. There are exceptions: Timothy Steele, while he sounds too much like Richard Wilbur on occasion, is the best of the lot, with Bruce Bauer, Charles Martin, and Brad Leithauser runners-up. The rest suffer deficiencies in craftsmanship, sometimes serious ones. The revival of formalism has much ground to cover. However, despite these reservations, the book provides a good starting point for those interested in contemporary, formal poetry. (The committed reader would do well to check out the original volumes by the poets mentioned above, particularly Steele.)

I am both a fan of formal poetry and free verse, but it always seemed like contemporary poets only wrote in free verse. i couldn't find any modern formal poetry. that's why this collection was such a wonderful little gem to find. some of the better poets born after 1950 are included here.

New Formalism was long overdue, and this volume surveys it admirably. Recommended.