Blindsight

The latest book of prose poems by one of America's premier philosophical poets. For the title of her newest collection of prose poems, Rosmarie Waldrop adopts a term — "blindsight" — used by the neuroscientist Antonio R. Damasio to describe a condition in which a person actually sees more than he or she is consciously aware. "This is one reason, " explains Waldrop, "for using collage: joining my fragments to other people's fragments in a dialogue, a net relation that might catch a bit more of the 'world.'" The collection — the author's fourth with ND — is divided into four thematic sections. The first, "Holderlin Hybrids, " resonates against the German poet's twisted syntax, while using rhythmic punctuation in counterpoint to sense. "'As Were, '" says Waldrop, "began with looking at the secondary occupations of artists — for example, Mallarme teaching English, Montaigne serving as mayor of Bordeaux — but this soon gave way to playing more generally with particular aspects of historical figures." The title section, "Blindsight, " is most consistent in its use of collage, juxtaposing words and images to jolting, epiphanic effect. "Cornell Boxes, " in contrast, has a formal unity, inspired by the constructions of Joseph Cornell, each prose poem "box" composed in a structure of fours: four paragraphs of four sentences each, with four footnotes.

Hèolderlin hybrids — As were — Blindsight — Cornell boxes.