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A review by sloatsj
Death Tractates by Brenda Hillman
4.0
I was taken by Brenda Hillman last year, inexplicably - at least to me - since experimental and somewhat obscure poetry isn’t something I’d say was my favourite. But I really enjoyed “Seasonal Works with Letters on Fire” and admired the freedom and energy of the poems.
I found “Death Tractates” second-hand and despite the uninviting title said hey I know her and why not so I did and as much as I was once again prepared not to like it, I really liked it. It is more straightforward than “Seasonal Works.” The poems revolve around the death of a mentor of Hillman’s. I’m sure someone knows who - I don’t. It’s not important.
It’s a book written in grief but the poet puts that slightly aside to ask questions and wonder about existence. This sounds boring. It’s not. There’s mystery about the friend’s death, as if the beloved one were still present, only separated a little, and unreachable. The dead woman is often referred to as a bride and she is everywhere or so one would like to think. The poems aren’t filled with tears or wailing, but with thought and careful wondering.
Here’s the start of ”Seated Bride” -
She had died without warning in early spring.
Which seemed right.
Now that which was far off could become intimate.
I said to the guides, let’s stand
very close to the mystery
and see how far she’s gone…
The speaker expresses the loss of someone she admired and relied on, someone who gave the speaker, too, definition. The identity is wounded in a way, surprised by the loss of something that helped shape it. There are also references to “shape,” as if life gave us shape, but a temporary one.
One of the best poems is “Much Hurrying,” which begins:
—So much hurrying right after a death:
as if a bride were waiting!
Crocuses sliced themselves out
with their penknives. Everything well made
seemed dead to them: Camelias. Their butcher-
paper pink. The well-made poems
seemed dead to you ….
A tractate sets out to explore a particular subject. It’s an attempt at comprehension, or in this case a number of attempts, since the title is plural. The attempt might not succeed - it’s the effort that matters.
I recommend Brenda Hillman. Since I’ve quite randomly tumbled into two of her books and found them both worthwhile, I wouldn’t worry about which one you choose.
I found “Death Tractates” second-hand and despite the uninviting title said hey I know her and why not so I did and as much as I was once again prepared not to like it, I really liked it. It is more straightforward than “Seasonal Works.” The poems revolve around the death of a mentor of Hillman’s. I’m sure someone knows who - I don’t. It’s not important.
It’s a book written in grief but the poet puts that slightly aside to ask questions and wonder about existence. This sounds boring. It’s not. There’s mystery about the friend’s death, as if the beloved one were still present, only separated a little, and unreachable. The dead woman is often referred to as a bride and she is everywhere or so one would like to think. The poems aren’t filled with tears or wailing, but with thought and careful wondering.
Here’s the start of ”Seated Bride” -
She had died without warning in early spring.
Which seemed right.
Now that which was far off could become intimate.
I said to the guides, let’s stand
very close to the mystery
and see how far she’s gone…
The speaker expresses the loss of someone she admired and relied on, someone who gave the speaker, too, definition. The identity is wounded in a way, surprised by the loss of something that helped shape it. There are also references to “shape,” as if life gave us shape, but a temporary one.
One of the best poems is “Much Hurrying,” which begins:
—So much hurrying right after a death:
as if a bride were waiting!
Crocuses sliced themselves out
with their penknives. Everything well made
seemed dead to them: Camelias. Their butcher-
paper pink. The well-made poems
seemed dead to you ….
A tractate sets out to explore a particular subject. It’s an attempt at comprehension, or in this case a number of attempts, since the title is plural. The attempt might not succeed - it’s the effort that matters.
I recommend Brenda Hillman. Since I’ve quite randomly tumbled into two of her books and found them both worthwhile, I wouldn’t worry about which one you choose.