Last year I was a judge for a prize in England, the T.S. Eliot Prize, so I read everything that was published in England last year. Paul Muldoon More Quotes by Paul Muldoon More Quotes From Paul Muldoon Form is a straitjacket in the way that a straitjacket was a straitjacket for Houdini. Paul Muldoon houdini form way The point of poetry is to be acutely discomforting, to prod and provoke, to poke us in the eye, to punch us in the nose, to knock us off our feet, to take our breath away. Paul Muldoon eye noses feet Confusion is what we're living with - not being able to make sense of what's happening to us from day to day. Whereas making sense is what we're aiming for - making sense. Paul Muldoon make-sense able confusion I suppose for whatever reason I actively welcome being put down, something which perhaps goes back to my upbringing - that accusation of not being worthy which could be laid at one's door. Paul Muldoon welcome reason doors I certainly am interested in accessibility, clarity, and immediacy. Paul Muldoon accessibility clarity immediacy If the poem has no obvious destination, there's a chance that we'll be all setting off on an interesting ride. Paul Muldoon destination chance interesting That's one of the great things about poetry; one realises that one does one's little turn - that you're just part of the great crop, as it were. Paul Muldoon crops doe littles What I try to do is to go into a poem - and one writes them, of course, poem by poem - to go into each poem, first of all without having any sense whatsoever of where it's going to end up Paul Muldoon writing trying firsts I live in New Jersey now, which always gets a bad rap here and there, but I must say, I enjoy living here too Paul Muldoon jersey here-and-there rap It seems to me the structure of the Quartets is too imposed. Paul Muldoon quartets structure seems Living at that pitch, on that edge, is something which many poets engage in to some extent. Paul Muldoon engagement edges poet It's not as if I'm trying to write crossword puzzles to which one might find an answer at the back of the book or anything like that. Paul Muldoon writing trying book One will never again look at a birch tree, after the Robert Frost poem, in exactly the same way. Paul Muldoon poetry tree way I do a lot of readings. Paul Muldoon reading There's very little of the intentional about the business of writing poetry, as least as far as I can see. Paul Muldoon writing-poetry writing littles Frost isn’t exactly despised but not enough people have worked out what a brilliant poet he was. Paul Muldoon icy frost people Your average pop song or film is a very sophisticated item, with very sophisticated ways of listening and viewing that we have not really consciously developed over the years - because we were having such a good time Paul Muldoon song average years The ground swell is what’s going to sink you as well as being what buoys you up. These are clichés also, of course, and I’m sometimes interested in how much one can get away with. Paul Muldoon buoys cliche sometimes Words want to find chimes with each other, things want to connect. Paul Muldoon chimes want Obviously one of the things that poets from Northern Ireland and beyond - had to try to make sense of was what was happening on a day-to-day political level. Paul Muldoon levels political trying
