Episode #115 The Problem Of Describing Trees - Robert Hass

Connor and Jack get meta and lose both the forest and the trees while dancing with Robert Hass' poem, "The Problem of Describing Trees." They discuss the poem's use of self-reflexivity, scientific language, and tango with a Yeats allusion. More on Robert Hass here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/robert-hass The Problem of Describing Trees By: Robert Hass The aspen glitters in the wind. And that delights us. The leaf flutters, turning, Because that motion in the heat of summer Protects its cells from drying out. Likewise the leaf Of the cottonwood. The gene pool threw up a wobbly stem And the tree danced. No. The tree capitalized. No. There are limits to saying, In language, what the tree did. It is good sometimes for poetry to disenchant us. Dance with me, dancer. Oh, I will. Aspens doing something in the wind. Find us at our website: www.closetalking.com/ Find us on Facebook at: facebook.com/closetalking 
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