The Line Forms Here
The line forms her.
The line conforms to her.
The line deforms her.
The line is a free-form her.
The line informs her.
The line — malformed; her.
The line misinforms her.
The line performs for her.
The line will not reform her.
The line is true-to-form her.
* * *
This week’s prompt at Big Tent Poetry was to change a word relationship, to tweak it so the reader/writer sees the phrase or word pair in a new way. I had hoped to do more with the idea than a simple list poem, but one has to follow the muse sometimes, no matter what. Actually, with a little more time & thought, this idea might transform into something of interest.
Strange word thought: malform rarely occurs as a third person verb. It is usually always a past-tense verb. Or rather an adjective.
Find other responses to the word-morph challenge here.
Related posts:
Oh, all you clever people. Some great ideas in this poem.
Thanks, Viv. :)
Oh, it does! The first line is a perfect start.
Thank you, Tumblewords.
Oh, this is rich in possibilities!
(re “malform”: possibly because people so seldom malform on purpose. They only find out they did it afterward, when someone else says so :-)
Glad you think so. And I think you are right about “malform.”
The line, for being just a line is a mind bender, thought twister, and a wonderful source of inspiration. Congratulations.
Elizabeth
Oh, thanks so much, Elizabeth. :-)
You’d have trouble forming a straight line with her!
Ah, and that’s one of the points on this line. Heh.
Love it. Especially: The line is a free-form her.
I liked that one, too. I wonder if I would be better un-alphabetizing the lines.
Up north, where I come from, we say ‘Queue’ – which actually works too – but ‘line’ and ‘form’ take us in a more artistic direction.
I love the word “queue” if only for all those stuttering, silent vowels.
That is quite a line! Fun poem.
Thanks, Mary!
Where’s the line? lol. Very clever!
:-)
Love it. An interesting take on the prompt (I struggled with this one, too).
I didn’t think it would be so hard. :-)
Deb I love this clever twist here!
Very funny!
Pamela
Thanks, Pamela. I wonder why folks think it is funny though.
A simple list poem? No, no, no! Why do we always do this to ourselves? This is awesome! This line IS true to form. I love it.
Oh, thanks, Maxie. And for the true-to-form. :-)
Deb I like the way you play with the words, a different meaning unfolds everytime I read this poem. I love this ‘The line — malformed; her.’
That was the most challenging one. I’m glad it works for you!
The line that is THE line reforms in each line through the word play on ‘form.’ Quite Gertrude Stein, though different, too.
As I read this poem, I feel, as a reader, that the line becomes a tightrope I am walking on. Each shift in the line word becomes a movement as I become a trapeze artist, deforming, reforming, malforming, free forming the line on which I tread with delicate balance.
If you ever considered a videopoem with this poem, pairing it with some public domain footage of Philippe Petit’s walk on the wire between the Twin Towers in 1974 would be amazing. The documentary, Man on a Wire (2008), a truly poetic film.
How many associations rebound from the forms of this brilliant line, Deb!
Wow. Your responses always seem to trigger so much more thinking for me, about a particular poem, about new ideas. Thank you so much. I’ve seen the Petit’s walk, and some (but not all) of the documentary. I’m inspired to get it on Netflix and make sure I see the whole thing. And I’ve been wanting to try video poetry, so perhaps this is an entre!
I like like this form a lot…
Thank you, Jeeves!
A wonderfully written poem! It would be hard to form a straight line out of any one person. Great post!
-Weasel
Thank you, Weasel!
this poem beauty lies in its simplicity. great poem.
I’m glad you think so, Mory. Thank you.
The list structure works very well with the title, as the twisty sentences queue up beneath. You handled the “malform” usage brilliantly.
Thank you, Francis. I’m glad that works for you.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by P. F. Anderson. P. F. Anderson said: "The line forms her. The line reforms her." http://stoneymoss.org/2010/07/09/what-did-you-say/ #poem via @stoneymoss [...]
This is one of those poems you get before you understand, and I think that for us poets the line is especially rich. :)
Ha! The importance of a line is so true. Glad you picked up on that, and I appreciate you saying “This is one of those poems you get before you understand.”
Hi Deb, language is pretty malleable, shades of difference. I think my link in Big tent got spammed. Maybe coz I’m logging in from a new laptop? I read something about Big tent celebration reading. Wishing the event every success and if I’m ever in Portland (this lifetime?), I’d love to meet up with you..:)
Thank you, Irene. And I never did see your link/comment at BTP. Please try again.
And it would be fun to meet up!
You must be channeling Gertrude Stein!!! :D
:-) Joyce! I hope she doesn’t mind.
I’ve walked the line.
I love this poem!
Oh! I like that!!
mainlining order, Deb?
Stitching a wavy thought process.