"(In the dedication to In Mad Love and War you affirm that "the erotic belongs in the poetry, as in the self." Can you elaborate?) It has taken me years to divest myself of Christian guilt, the Puritan cloud that provides the base for culture in this country... or at least to recognize the twists and turns of that illogic in my own sensibility. In that framework the body is seen as an evil thing and is separate from spirit. The body and spirit are not separate. Nor is that construct any different in the place from which I write poetry. There is no separation. (1993)"
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Musicians from the United States20th-century poets from the United StatesNative AmericansPeople from TulsaWomen musicians
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Imported from EN Wikiquote
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Joy_Harjo
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Joy Harjo
99 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Joy Harjo →
Related Quotes
"The traditional ways and rituals of all of Earth's peoples are kept in containers of poetry, song, and story. It is h…"
"In my community, we are taught that leadership qualities include humility, compassion, a sense of fairness, the abili…"
"When she broke on Earth, the light in her was not broken. We cannot break light, nor can we destroy it."
"Poetry (and other forms of writing) can be useful as a tool for finding the way into or through the dark. Or a device…"
"The most powerful poetry is birthed through cracks in history, through what is broken and unseen."
"I think of poetry as a kind of lyricism. I think of poetry as a place beyond words, that we — you know, the paradox i…"
"It was all connected, this poetics of listening, word making, and dancing. There was power to transform, to lighten t…"
"Emerging from a story, a poem, the Earth, a time in history, or from the body of our mothers is sometimes explosive, …"
"We must take care to feed the minds, hearts, and spirits of those coming up behind us--to offer songs, poems, and sto…"
"We are story gatherers. That's what we humans do."