No Time for Frank-ness

In his Sunday NY Times column, No Time for Poetry, Frank Rich writes, "President Obama did not offer his patented poetry in his Inaugural Address." Now by the time you read this, a copy editor (who may have come up with the title) may alter it—probably not. But it propagates the ignorant view that poetry is meant to be "inspirational" or "uplifting", not "realistic" or, heaven forbid, "analytic". The Beat Poets come to mind. Maybe he should read them.

I don't think that Maureen Dowd (Exit the Boy King) would make this mistake. She knows how prose can be poetry—Yes it can! Maureen knows how to do this, and that is why her writing is more stimulating and interesting than Frank's.

I'm just being frank.