Over in the crit forum, a comment from ^Graff included the following interesting bit (reposted here with permission):
My experience is that while comments about where a poem falls short are often dead-on, the suggestions for how to fix a problem are much less often just right. This is because the suggestion can only work if the commenter understands exactly what the poet is trying to say, and if that part of the poem needed to be critiqued, it's often exactly because it wasn't clear.
So are suggestions useless or presumptuous? I don't think so.
1. They help illustrate the problem; sometimes it's hard to explain what's wrong but a sample correction, even if not a perfect fix, may commnicate better than a hundred phrases of explanation ever could.
1a. A careful reading of a suggestion can show where a reader thinks a poem is trying to go - this can be especially helpful where the real problem isn't where the critter pointed, but stems from elsewhere in the poem and is only reflected at the point of critique. And it may also point new possibilities within the poem to be explored.
1b. This is the most important point for me.
2. They can spark ideas for the poet, like a brainstorming session.
3. And of course the suggestion may after all be exactly what was needed. it does happen.
Thanks, ^Graff, for giving me a jumping-off point to discuss something I've been thinking about. What do the rest of you think? I know some people hate suggestions; as I've tried to show above, I like them and find them helpful - even if I'm not likely to take them often.
"And, for future reference, when i spy (or any other critic) tells you the bits in your poem that made them stumble, or that pulled them out of the experience of the poem, or which read as false, or whatever, they're letting you know the best ways to communicate to your audience. "
As it happens, I disagree with the last clause. I think ^Graff's point here is thoughtful, and mostly absolutely right, but the final clause implies (to me) that a critter's *suggestion* is what shows the poet how best to communicate. That may not be what was intended, but I think it's an interesting point to explore, anyway.
My experience is that while comments about where a poem falls short are often dead-on, the suggestions for how to fix a problem are much less often just right. This is because the suggestion can only work if the commenter understands exactly what the poet is trying to say, and if that part of the poem needed to be critiqued, it's often exactly because it wasn't clear.
So are suggestions useless or presumptuous? I don't think so.
1. They help illustrate the problem; sometimes it's hard to explain what's wrong but a sample correction, even if not a perfect fix, may commnicate better than a hundred phrases of explanation ever could.
1a. A careful reading of a suggestion can show where a reader thinks a poem is trying to go - this can be especially helpful where the real problem isn't where the critter pointed, but stems from elsewhere in the poem and is only reflected at the point of critique. And it may also point new possibilities within the poem to be explored.
1b. This is the most important point for me.
2. They can spark ideas for the poet, like a brainstorming session.
3. And of course the suggestion may after all be exactly what was needed. it does happen.
Thanks, ^Graff, for giving me a jumping-off point to discuss something I've been thinking about. What do the rest of you think? I know some people hate suggestions; as I've tried to show above, I like them and find them helpful - even if I'm not likely to take them often.
