Wanting to Say Things: The Power of Stories
AN ANTHOLOGY OF NATIVE AMERICAN LITERATURE
"Reading Poems in Public" by Maurice Kenny
I stand on a stage and read poems,
poems of boys broken on the road;
the audience tosses questions.
I tell of old chiefs swindled of their daughters,
young braves robbed of painted shields,
Medicine Man hitting the bottle;
I chant old songs in their language
of the Spirit in wind and water . . .
they ask if Indians shave.
I recite old stories,
calendar epics of victory battles,
and cavalry dawn massacres on wintered plains,
villages where war ponies are tethered to snow . . .
and they want to know
how many Indians commit suicide.
I read into the microphone,
I read into the camera,
I read into the printed page,
I read into the ear . . .
and they say what a pretty ring you wear.
The tape winds, the camera reels,
the newspaper spins
and the headlines read:
Ruffian, the race horse, dies in surgery.
At the end of the reading they thank me;
go for hamburgers at McDonalds
and pick up a six-pack to suck
as they watch the death
of Geronimo on the late show.
I stand on a stage and read poems,
and read poems, and read . . .
Editor's Commentary
In this poem, Maurice Kenny addresses the issue of
audience. When writing, many authors consider how to appeal to their audience and write in a way that keeps them engaged. Along with that comes the questions of “What if the audience does not listen? What is the purpose of writing and communicating if no one listens?” In the poem, the speaker reads poems to disinterested ears. Instead of giving up, he stands “on a stage and read poems, / and read poems, and read . . .” Sometimes, storytelling is necessary even if no one is on the receiving end. There are truths that need to be said, and the lack of audience should not stop anyone from telling their story. Kenny encourages readers to dispose of their preconceptions, distractions, and judgment in order to listen and understand, not just hear.