Why Poetry Sucks

Book excerpt: Although "experimental poetry" has a reputation for dead seriousness, unconventional poetry has a long relationship with humour, from Chaucer's ribald tales to Kenneth Goldsmith's appearance on The Colbert Report. Focusing on the years from 1960 to the present, Why Poetry Sucks scrutinizes Canada's poetic avant-gardes for signs of humorous life, whether in the form of witty jokes, punning wordplay, or ugly pranks. At its best and most challenging, poetic humour moves deftly between entertainment, attack, and self-critique, making us laugh at the same time it makes us wonder why we're laughing at all. Why Poetry Sucks is a readable anthology designed for the public sphere, while maintaining an academic framework that allows the anthology to appeal to both the general and the student reader.