The Paris Review - Fall 2016

Recommendations

Info

them from the blame levelled elsewhere. But it doesn’t feel that way to me. It feels as if the authorial position is not reserved from any of the moral damage. <strong>The</strong> responsibility has to be carried equally across the whole domain of human expression and human action. In that sense, it’s ruthless because it is without pity. That is ruth, isn’t it: pitying something. And the argument of course is that the quality of pity is an important part of the gentleness of human recognition of fellow humanity, against pride—of which most poets have a plentiful supply. Several of my poem-sequences have conducted this part argument against clemency. <strong>The</strong> argument is that mercy is a serious disruption of the moral order. Mercy abates the use of law to regulate consistently in accordance with judgment about what is right and true and necessary. With godlike condescension, mercy destroys the consistency of the human order and human law. And we live within the human ambit, and therefore we need consistency—what Shakespeare in A Midsummer Night’s Dream calls “constancy.” We need to defend and promote it, and that means or should mean that mercy is an extravagant extra. It also means that ruthlessness, for all that it sounds inhumane and violent and destructive, is a consequence that is hard to avoid. And I don’t like this argument very much. I’m not sure I could conduct this campaign against mercy to the bitter end, though I’m prepared to conduct it for a long way. At the final end, I’m going to dodge it by some means, because I’m human, and that’s the weak but necessary ending to the strong argument that prevails, almost ultimately, at the final point. 207
Four Poems by J. H. Prynne YET WHY NOT Never or, will to it, or nerve throw past most over soon after, and grasp again offensive likely before ever mud downwards cut, snip relative next to time beset play genuine it break: out by remiss ever sever gastric flux do for provide, gainful lax all never acute assert at more elate better still. Instinct by step cost not for before to press or grill tell strike blood flatter runoff, lever assort it piecemeal, assent to deduct mud in grind both under anterior the step previous stop ever to ever. To ever step will decline for one to meek repair furtive, few than certain angular saw, in drive term relation or so frequent casual fit. All not chosen pit limit disfigure, late fill near total better wait party to quick, not early river custom, tepid and flow. Insist did rim-perfect as few ever will before not soon, holding wrist in front, look back taken. Rapid converse to apex get climate some to die even before pat list, shunt up weather climax remittance flex not yet, ready. Up to step never level incline wanted, condign else in gene pair be for return upper parkline, all in sudden afford to run. Ever not even not so ready tacit permit, later outflow emit the step will break will over will, not or so yet it in this permissible livelihood. 208
Page 2:
HERMÈS BY NATURE
Page 5:
THE TRENCH BOOT IN HORWEEN® BROWN
Page 8 and 9:
“. . . one of the most influentia
Page 10 and 11:
Editor Managing Editor Web Editor A
Page 12 and 13:
#EVERYDAYMADEWELL MADEWELL.COM
Page 15 and 16:
Michael Robbins WALKMAN I didn’t
Page 17 and 18:
Crime’s 1976 classic “Hot Wire
Page 19 and 20:
the resurrection of the body and li
Page 21 and 22:
saying I was glad to help the cause
Page 23:
Just think: there was a song that I
Page 26 and 27:
name, twice, as though it were bein
Page 28 and 29:
So what’s the story about? my mot
Page 30 and 31:
eyes that some days seem black—an
Page 32 and 33:
Wanda walks into a bar and stands b
Page 34 and 35:
designed to fulfill the desires of
Page 36 and 37:
Karen Solie A HERMIT Experience tea
Page 39 and 40:
Manuscript page of “The Diabetic
Page 41 and 42:
some Langston Hughes in the newspap
Page 43 and 44:
attic of our house in Buffalo and p
Page 45 and 46:
INTERVIEWER What appealed to you ab
Page 47 and 48:
children were bombed at the 16th St
Page 49 and 50:
INTERVIEWER I know you and Baraka h
Page 51 and 52:
Last Stand of White Nationalism.”
Page 53 and 54:
REED With literature you can condem
Page 55 and 56:
But I do have problems with some fe
Page 57 and 58:
tried to get the cash register by m
Page 59 and 60:
INTERVIEWER Do you think that over
Page 61 and 62:
wrote a long essay on James Baldwin
Page 63 and 64:
Reed, 2015. “Combative writing ha
Page 65 and 66:
Ishmael Reed THE DIABETIC DREAMS OF
Page 67 and 68:
Floor, and the windows were Gingerb
Page 69 and 70:
No Cops ANDREW MARTIN The ants had
Page 71 and 72:
his literary status that made him s
Page 73 and 74:
she’d get fired. Leslie couldn’
Page 75 and 76:
home, and they’d lain on the hard
Page 77 and 78:
“Right, like I’m going to just
Page 79 and 80:
ONCE THE READING was underway, Lesl
Page 81 and 82:
“Just fucking write something,”
Page 83:
They followed the exodus out of the
Page 86 and 87:
She would start writing when she go
Page 88 and 89:
Protectors AMIE BARRODALE She cut t
Page 90 and 91:
ack nails didn’t actually need to
Page 92 and 93:
Sauce”; “Homemade Natural Fizzy
Page 94 and 95:
The door to the guest room opened w
Page 96 and 97:
“A Milk-Bone.” “And does she
Page 98 and 99:
“Well, maybe. I can’t tell actu
Page 100:
A dark room full of birds where I s
Page 103 and 104:
desire to draw. I would draw everyt
Page 107 and 108:
San Rocco, 2004, gouache, 12" x 9".
Page 109 and 110:
Drawing Together, 2000, watercolor,
Page 111 and 112:
This spread : Quotidian Paradise, 2
Page 115 and 116:
Stations, 1990, oil on canvas, 60"
Page 118 and 119:
The Moment Rethought, 1991, oil on
Page 122 and 123:
Eurydice, 9-16, 1995, gouache, each
Page 124 and 125:
change, continuing ~ look, look aga
Page 126 and 127:
fell soundless on the shadowed snow
Page 128 and 129:
translucent, scouring, churning, ch
Page 130 and 131:
petrels taking flight. They turn to
Page 132 and 133:
everything the river knows? ~ Mired
Page 134 and 135:
to the light below the bridges—wa
Page 136 and 137:
is caught and wound around the boll
Page 138 and 139:
~~~ The river surges, then eddies t
Page 140 and 141:
a line of the river stays true to i
Page 142 and 143:
to the boat turned counterclockwise
Page 144 and 145:
understood, star-crossed, unrequite
Page 146 and 147:
Panthers ANN BEATTIE Little Edgar c
Page 148 and 149:
“Take out the casserole. I’ll b
Page 150 and 151:
Yes, he nodded. Out of the corner o
Page 152 and 153:
“Little Edgar, get your little bu
Page 154 and 155:
“Mrs. Rodriguez, Edgar has been t
Page 156 and 157:
“We live in Key West. My friend w
Page 158 and 159:
“That I could have been attacked.
Page 160 and 161: He’s maybe going to have to go ba
Page 162 and 163: “Little Edgar,” she repeated.
Page 164 and 165: Lawrence Joseph IS WHAT IT IS Fulto
Page 166 and 167: The Well AKHIL SHARMA We lived frug
Page 168 and 169: Years passed. We moved from Queens
Page 170 and 171: Friday’s. “Be careful,” I sai
Page 172 and 173: just like there was in me. The symp
Page 174 and 175: Betsy was probably going to end. I
Page 176: Rowan Ricardo Phillips LITTLE SONGS
Page 179 and 180: visit, he gave us keys and allowed
Page 181 and 182: I knew him warmly, but I did have a
Page 183 and 184: With my best and not even particula
Page 185 and 186: of my priggishness. Nonetheless, it
Page 187 and 188: ecall. It was meant to be George Pu
Page 189 and 190: This was the era of the Vietnam War
Page 191 and 192: most of Mao’s works at one time o
Page 193 and 194: We didn’t talk about poetry much,
Page 195 and 196: Shall I shut the door on this book?
Page 197 and 198: elations. I was clumsy, and inexper
Page 199 and 200: PRYNNE He was a great fountainhead
Page 201 and 202: this phenomenon of molecular forces
Page 203 and 204: about Parmenides as an author you c
Page 205 and 206: ight at the conclusion of the poem,
Page 207 and 208: Edinburgh, all over the place. On t
Page 209: dialectical part of it comes in. It
Page 213 and 214: MORNING To the or so then for all f
Page 215 and 216: Marker Studio Front Door, 2012.
Page 217 and 218: identical to himself ? How do you r
Page 219 and 220: Kosmos: Red Bath, Zvezda, Moscow, 1
Page 221 and 222: of kitsch), no dust; the thousands
Page 223: Marker Studio #7, 2007.
Page 227: Marker Studio #4, 2007.
Page 230 and 231: Charles Simic HISTORY Our life stor
Page 232 and 233: CONTRIBUTORS AMIE BARRODALE’s fir
Page 234: WWW.HONEYANDWAXBOOKS.COM
show all

The Paris Review - Fall 2016

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?