Amanda Gorman’s poem at the US Capitol yesterday, “The Hill We Climb,” was arguably the highlight of the inaugural festivities.
Besides capturing the zeitgeist, it had a meter I don’t think I’ve ever heard in a poem before.
Have you ever heard anything similar? And what did you think of the poem?
I loved it.
The over all message of the poem. The phrasing. And her body language (grace?) was just icing on the cake.
That being said, I’m not a poem enthusiast so I don’t have a lot to compare it to.
So far as I can tell, it’s free verse.
There are a lot of poetic devices used within: alliteration, rhyme, assonance, consonance, repetition, etc., but the meter itself is free.
I thought it was excellent. My only criticism is that it could have been edited to be a bit shorter and tighter. I loved her look, too; bold but stately. Since I missed Biden’s swearing-in Gorman’s reading was the highlight of the inauguration for me.
One critique I had was that it was hard to tell where it actually started - she said some kind of intro words and it took me a verse to realize the poem was underway.
I watched with tears welling.
Then, afterwards, learning that she has overcome a speech impediment, and is about the age of one of my kids, made the whole thing more impressive.
The meter-- at least in parts-- made me think of rap. The rhythm, the internal rhymes, etc.
She said on CNN last night that she was influenced by Hamilton. She also outlined the “deep dive” she did, reading other inauguration poems, and a lot of history, to prepare this. She obviously relies on hard work and preparation in addition to her raw talent.
I was impressed with her appearance at the inauguration, but the CNN interview was also very impressive, in terms of intelligence, wit, and composure–especially for a 22 year-old.
Sure, and it had a preacher’s cadence at parts with its repetitions, as well. But the entire time she is playing as much with the sounds and pacing of words as their meaning. It’s entirely musical.
This beautiful woman is amazing!
She does a poem about abortion rights, but I don’t know how to link it, it’s definitely worth seeking out though. You will not be disappointed.
I bet “Amanda Gorman” was one of the most Googled phrases yesterday.
I will not disagree.
I thought it was very well done, an excellent poem.
Yes, it was rap-esque. I don’t like rap as a rule, but I did like this as much as I liked the rap in the movie Office Space which was a lot. If she pursues poetry at all in the future, she’ll be as well known as Maya Angelou.
You can count on it
Gorman was chosen as the youth poet laureate of Los Angeles in 2014. She published the poetry book The One for Whom Food Is Not Enough in 2015.
In 2016, Gorman founded the nonprofit organization One Pen One Page, a youth writing and leadership program. . .
In 2017, Gorman became the first youth poet to open the literary season for the Library of Congress, and she has read her poetry on MTV. Gorman wrote “In This Place: An American Lyric” for her September 2017 performance at the Library of Congress, which commemorated the inauguration of Tracy K. Smith as Poet Laureate of the United States.The Morgan Library and Museum acquired her poem “In This Place (An American Lyric)” and displayed it in 2018 near works by Elizabeth Bishop.
Oh, yes. I bookmarked it to whip out next time anyone my age complains about whiny, entitled, shallow millenials. She is articulate, clever, and poised - an amazing young woman.
It’s people like her that give me hope for this country.
I loved her speech. I don’t know if I’d call The Hill We Climb a poem, but it is like the Gettysburg Address and I Have a Dream–powerful uses of words to capture the American spirit.
I just relistened to it. You’ll notice if you listen again that her phrasing extends into the:
Mr. President, Dr. Biden, etc.
and she uses the titles to particularly emphasize the women… So I would bet that the entire time she speaks is the poem.
I thought it was wonderful, optimistic and hopeful. It gave me hope for what the youngsters in this country might bring- she’s 22 years old. She brought a smile to my face, especially when she rhymed “burden” with “certain”. She sounded like Bob Dylan, Eminem and Maya Angelou all wrapped up into one.
The text of the poem is here:
I thought she was wonderful, such a lovely young woman. I think the imagery of her words was very powerful, her message and presentation were a great addition to the day.
I thought it was beautiful and inspiring and everything it ought to be and more.
But I do chuckle to hear that some folks heard the line “a country that is bruised, but whole” as “a country that’s a bruised butthole”.