Mutlu Konuk Blasing

“A Novel in Poetry”: An Interview With Dr. Mutlu Konuk Blasing and Poet Randy Blasing

“A Novel in Poetry”: An Interview With Dr. Mutlu Konuk Blasing and Poet Randy Blasing

I had the honor of speaking with Dr. Mutlu Konuk Blasing and Randy Blasing, the formidable translators of Nazım Hikmet. The Blasings have translated six books of Hikmet’s poetry together, and on their own they have a long record of contributions to scholarship and poetry.

lamp in front of blue wall

American Poetry: Video and the Evolution of Language

The composition of poetry has taken on a new life. Poetry has evolved from oral and traditional forms, to print and performance, and to our present moment where an amalgam of all forms is possible with technology. Video is a revisiting of the oral and performative traditions of poetry in a contemporary context. Moving images can address the human experience and maintain the complexity of ideas, range of emotions, and clarity of language as does written poetry.