English Language and Literature ETDs
Publication Date
5-3-1976
Abstract
Rebuilt is a collection of free verse, rooted in the cultural traditions of the American Southwest. The sense of magic and the supernatural which runs through the folktales of both the Spanish and Indians of northern New Mexico forms a basis for these poems. This material is not simply lifted from the sources but is altered to shape "rebuilt'' images that attempt to cope with the unreality of the late twentieth century. The thematic concern of these poems centers on frustration, a sense of powerlessness from the most intimate level of personal relationships to a society's guilt over its own ecological suicide. The poems move from a description of these problems to an exploration of possible ways out of them. Drawing on the seeds of brujeria and shamanism, I search for the preternatural metaphor that will at least match, if not undo, the extraordinary collision of power and uselessness in our lives. The metaphors are set in lines that are designed to move with a chant-like rhythm. Words and phrases are repeated, lines are piled upon lines without breath breaks, and images snowball, pulling seemingly random details together into one center focus. And at that center is the “beat," the hypnotic turning and returning to the key word and image. Like the brujos and medicine men beyond memory, these poems look for their power to a simple driving rhythm akin to our own heart's beat. The diction of the verse is strongly colloquial. The characters who play through these lines are humble, acquainted with living on this earth, and their voices must ring clear and uncomplicated. The only real magic in our lives is the force of our own spirit and that power is far removed, however ironically, from the rarefied realms of metaphysics. It arises only out of the real ''nuts and bolts" of our daily existence, and the point of these poems ls to "rebuild" that common experience into a few songs of power.
Degree Name
English
Level of Degree
Masters
Department Name
English
First Committee Member (Chair)
Gene Frumkin
Second Committee Member
Frederick Bolton Warner
Third Committee Member
Illegible
Language
English
Document Type
Thesis
Recommended Citation
Sagel, Jim. "Rebuilt." (1976). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/engl_etds/367
