The Making of a Poem
When reading “38” by Layli Long Soldier, the first thing I noticed was that: this isn’t your conventional poem. Unlike the sonnets, sestinas, and villanelles that are so commonly taught in classrooms, this particular poem follows no apparent format or rhyming scheme. Instead, it almost seems like a conversation. Throughout the entire poem, Soldier guides you through every single italicization and line leaving you little room for confusion. There are no flowery words or fluttery thoughts, there is only the harsh truth of what happened to the Dakota people.
In fact, “‘Real’ poems do not ‘really’ require words” is the perfect way to describe this poem. In “38”, Soldier calls the Dakota’s revenge on Myrick a poem. There was no words, no dialogue, only an act of taking a stand. I believe this is the very essence of what Soldier is trying to incorporate in her own poem; that all a poem needs is to have something to say. It is quiet, a little sassy, and with a hint of exasperation, but you can feel the systematic oppression Soldier is pointing at with her words.
On the contrary, the act of imposing various overbearing treaties onto the Dakota people from the US government is not described as a poem by Soldier. Rather they are described as trickery, muddy, and puzzling. They [the treaties] do not get to the point, they are constructed to be sly and undermining, they are written to leave further loopholes to be abused. But I do also feel inclined to say that this act can also be called a poem, if we are to go by the basis that all a poem constitutes of is having something to say. For the Dakota warriors, it was a cry against the injustice they’ve faced and suffered. For the US government, it was the disdain and contempt they held against the natives.
Poems do not always need to follow the orthodoxies of established poems. Neither do they need to be praising the valiant acts of heroes who fought against tyranny or tyranny reigning supreme. They just have to have something to say, because “everything is in the language that we use”.
Thoughts
Looking back, it was pretty hard for me to choose my most favorite blog post. But if I had to choose one, I think my first post would be fit for the job. I’m no stranger to writing, but in all the years I’ve spent learning in school I’ve never exactly had a chance to write out my opinions on the topic we were discussing in class weekly. It was always a long assignment due every other month, or a paper we spent all year sifting through. I think the opportunity given to express my own take on the writings of others really benefited me academically. It also helped that I’m allowed to write in my own style/voice because I’ve always found the traditional teachings back in middle school – high school too rigid for my liking. That said, this piece is quite literally the start of this journey. By reading and analyzing “38”, we learned to think about the power of language, not through our words but the actions we take; and by extension, the actions we don’t take. I think this was especially important in this course, because it paved the way for practically every other text we’ve read. Writing to a lot of people (that I know), seems to be an odd chore. You write down your thoughts, now what. Too often do people seem to forget that by writing we’re making sense of our own way of thinking. We’re building something out of “nothing” that would motivate us to achieve something greater. It may seem too sentimental, maybe a little cringey, but I’d like to think this is why “38” is my most favorite blog post.