The Markov Chain by Ted Pearson
"When Basil Bunting declared that 'Pens are too light. / Take a chisel to write,' I imagine he had in mind the kind of exact and exacting poetry Ted Pearson has been steadily producing for decades. In The Markov Chain, Pearson presents a series of eight-line poems, each composed of four exquisitely crafted alexandrines: 'These formal restrictions // are like benedictions ...Constraints lead to freedoms // exceeding predictions.' Raising the ante, Pearson uses these formal constraints to probe the social constraints contemporary culture imposes on art and life. 'When the People say we, // they don't mean you and me. / The consensus they're seeking // will set no one free.' This double take on constraints creates an animating tension throughout the book, one in which 'The gist of the lyric // tells a whole other tale.' Pearson's chiseled poems enact a deep investigation into language that at once revels in and questions its own constraints. Follow at your own pace, but Pearson's ear, as always, won't lead you astray." -Paul Naylor
Ted Pearson's early studies in liturgical music, modernism, and jazz led him to poetry in the mid-1960s. He attended Vandercook College of Music, Foothill College, and San Francisco State University. Recent volumes include Extant Glyphs: 1964-1980 (Singing Horse, 2014), An Intermittent Music: 1975-2010 (Chax, 2016), The Coffin Nail Blues (Atelos, 2016), and After Hours (Singing Horse, 2016). He co-authored The Grand Piano: An Experiment in Collective Autobiography (This / Mode A, 2006-2010) in ten volumes. His literary essays have been widely published, notably in Poetics Journal. He lives in southern California, where he is adjunct faculty at the University of Redlands.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781848615335 |
| ISBN 10 | 1848615337 |
| Title | The Markov Chain |
| Author | Ted Pearson |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Shearsman Books |
| Year published | 2017-04-14 |
| Number of pages | 68 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |