Audre Lorde ‘Echoes’

We’ve enjoyed lively discussions during our reading groups this term, so thank you to all those who have been able to attend. A particular favourite poet that has stood out to me is Audre Lorde (1934-1992), whom I was previously unfamiliar with (thanks to our loyal PoetrySoc member Billie!) After the meeting I went off and browsed the Poetry Society Library in the JB Morrell and came across this one, which I think is stunning. Lorde has a masterful ability to create a quiet and understated poetic voice that is simultaneously powerful and unique. Her choice of spacial caesurae embedded throughout the poem rather than punctuation demand that we breathe and reflect as we read.

Echoes

There is a timbre of voice
that comes from not being heard
and knowing    you are not being
heard    noticed only
by others    not heard
for the same reason.

The flavor of midnight fruit tongue
calling your body through dark light
piercing the allure of safety
ripping the glitter of silence
around you
          dazzle me with color
          and perhaps I won’t notice
till after you’re gone
your hot grain smell tattooed
into each new poem    resonant
beyond escape    I am listening
in that fine space
between desire and always 
the grave stillness
before choice.

As my tongue unravels
in what pitch
will the scream hang unsung
or shiver like lace on the borders
of never    recording
which dreams heal    which
dream can kill
stabbing a man and burning his body
for cover     being caught
making love to a woman 
I do not know.

Do let any of the committee know if you would like to submit a poem and a brief analysis for this blog! Equally, looking ahead to our later reading groups this term, feel free to suggest poems for discussion.