On Bulgakov (review)

Ana Elsner's work and her poetic voice were influenced in part by Mikhail Afanasievich Bulgakov, a Russian playwright and novelist. This is her abbreviated review of Bulgakov's novel 'The Master and Margarita'.

'Мастер и Маргарита' - полифоничный роман Михаила Афанасьевича Булгакова, русский писатель и драматург (1891—1940), называемый иногда фантастическим.

An excerpt from the book:

" ... И плавится лед в вазочке, и глядят от соседнего стола чьи-то налитые кровью глаза, и страшно, страшно ... О боги! Яду мне, яду! ..."

" ... And the ice is melting in the bowl, and at the next table you see someone's bloodshot, bovine eyes, and you're afraid, afraid . . . Oh, gods, my gods, poison, bring me poison! ..."

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"Mikhail Afanasievich Bulgakov's complex satirical and phantasmagorical short stories, novels and dramas are psychological exposés, dealing with the correlation of humanity and power in the (former) Soviet societal reality. A prime example is Bulgakov's faustian novel, 'The Master and Margarita', which I want to bring to your attention. It is a veritable tornado of sensual impressions and an explosion of searing imagery.

Oddly enough, most every reader of twentieth century literature is familiar with the works of Russian writers Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and Boris Pasternak, but very few have heard of, much less read, Bulgakov. 'The Master and Margarita' is decidedly one of my favorites.

Its 32 chapters read almost like individual short stories in and of themselves. No other writer has ever camouflaged acerbic political satire in such a luxurious cloak of fantasy. Three dense layers of narrative are masterfully interwoven so that you literally get three plots at once. I count this work as one of the greatest and most powerful novels of the 20th century.

Having read different translations, I prefer and recommend the one by Diana Burgin & Katherine Tiernan O'Connor which provides interpretive footnotes.

It is beyond doubt that Mikhail Afanasievich Bulgakov has influenced my own work as a poet and writer,"

Ana Elsner

Click here for the original text

Click for a biography of novelist and playwright Mikhail Bulgakov

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: Watch a clip of Master and Margarita, the Movie

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FLIRTING (poem)

Here is a poem that has several layers of meaning, as poems by Ana Elsner often do. It requires repeated reading to penetrate to the deeper message.

FLIRTING


Stony Sweetheart,
grazer on meadows of skin,
WHO chimed you into Sunday,
the one day when there is no bloodshed?

Flirtatious Dominatrix,
subject of our fascination,
now un-sleeping,
now raised up
from the darkest soil of heaven.

Say you wish you were a Seraphim,

but slice through our sinews
with the gold-tipped blade of your song,

your de-li-ri-ous-ly hypnotic siren-song,

that cripples our feeble attempts
at gasping for life.


Sunday.
No bloodshed.


And you are inscrutably a wanton Seductress,
approaching from far away,

yet never far enough away
to save us from the predictable outcome
of our dangerous contrivances,
and let us go

un-claimed.


Yours is immortally a love that is, needs be,
all-consuming,
all-exhaustive,
de-lic-ious-ly fatal to our bereft existence.

Yet all our new days
we will be,

we dream of your touch,

secretly,
craven.


All now flirtation.


All.

Now.




© Ana Elsner
[reprinted by permission]

FLIRTING is published in CAVEAT LECTOR, a magazine dedicated to literature, social and cultural criticism, philosophy, and the arts

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What is Poetry

When asked What is poetry? Ana Elsner got very animated and replied at length.


"There is no definitive answer to 'What is Poetry'. To me it is a purely academic question and a very tedious and irritating one.

A thousand scholars have tried to approximate an answer and fell short. Much like accountants they engage in counting verse, lines and syllables, assessing structure to fit the technical spreadsheet, much like mathematicians they configure pattern and meter into quatrains, pentameters, hexameter and other formulaic schemes, and yet don't even come close to what lies at the core of poetry.

By devising categories of form, rhyme, prosody, genre and style, and then sorting poems accordingly to fit into pre-defined pigeonholes they do injustice to the ground-breaking, multifaceted and dynamic aspect of poetry. Classification is artificial and is a petty academic exercise, one that will be eschewed by those of us who appreciate the raw and organic flow of each individual poet's unique voice. Unlike other literary genres, poetry cannot and should not be approached in a sterile scholarly fashion. By nature it defies clinical analysis, and "thank god" for that.

Academics have done their busy best to build a suffocating mausoleum around the living and ever mutating organism that is poetry. Let’s stop them dead in their tracks before they add more layers of insulation.

Whereas the history of poetry throughout the ages is certainly describable, the essence of poetry is not.

A lot of clever people have felt compelled to say a lot of clever things about poetry or about individual poems, appointing themselves authorities on poetic merit. But that is beside the point. The point being, that poems cannot be evaluated, they must be taken in. At best you can render a personal opinion, and that is fine, but any claim to authoritative judgment is sheer hubris.

Poetry does not address itself to the intellect alone, rather it targets the heart and soul. You might as well try to answer the question 'What is soul?', an equally pointless undertaking.

If and when you read or hear a poem that speaks to you, then you will know what poetry is, what it is to YOU. When you come across a poem that leaves you cold, that poem is no less poetry than is the one you intuitively respond to.

Poetry is not 'this' or 'that', 'iambic' or 'assonant', 'lyric' or 'dramatic', 'right' or 'wrong'. Poetry just is. It exists in the realm of the personal, of the subjective, of the sensual, of the evocative, of the experimental, of the intangible, of the magical.

It is my belief, and strictly my own, that in order to get a grasp on poetry, a certain emotional self-confidence is required. By that I mean, if you are ready to look under the rug and treat with the feelings that you have swept there, then you are ready to give yourself over to poetry.

As my own poetry gains in popularity, I get invited to perform my poems at many different public venues. In general, those people who attend my readings are already equipped with a willingness to set aside all reason, to open themselves up to the irrational and embark on a magical journey that leads to points unknown. Not infrequently I do attract newcomers to poetry. I consider it my responsibility as a poet to unchain them from all preconceptions and empower them to boldly jump into the open waters of unpredictability as my poems carry them along,"
Ana Elsner



For amplification and illustration: Click to read POETRY, Ana Elsner's signature poem


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CIPHERS (book)

CIPHERS OF UNCOMMON ORIGIN - Poems By Ana Elsner, Volume I is Elsner's first book of poetry. It is a selection from Elsner's early work. Though modest in size with 28 pages, it packs a punch with compelling imagery, powerful message and meticulously crafted language.
CIPHERS has garnered only positive reviews from poetry greats like Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Jack Hirschman. You can find these reviews on the publisher's site (see link below). Other reviewers have joined in the chorus of praise.

"Ana Elsner writes from her heart, full of empathy for the fate of man. Hers is a sensitive soul which she is unafraid to lay bare. Her words ring true and hang in the air long after the page has been turned. Listen",
- Terry Tarnoff, author of The Bone Man of Benares

CIPHERS sports a bright yellow, modern art cover and easy-to-read print. It was published in June of 2007 by InstaPLANET Press as part of their Language Maker Poetry Series. The publisher's website states:
"InstaPLANET Press is an independent small press, established in 2007 in San Francisco, California. We are passionate about poetry. Here, the word is the poet's paintbrush. We specialize in publishing new and original collections of bold and multifaceted poems that contribute to the enrichment of the contemporary poetry scene."

A quote from the Wikipedia article on small presses:

"Since the profit margins for small presses can be narrow, many are driven by other motives, including the desire to help disseminate literature with only a small likely market. Small presses tend to fill the niches that larger publishers neglect. ..."

It is a sad but well-known fact that poetry is not a significantly commercial product. The market for poetry is minuscule compared to that of other literary genres. Therefore the large publishing houses shy away from taking a chance on, and incurring a considerable expense in, publishing it, with the exception of keeping up the well-established standard stock of textbook poets, mostly deceased, whose names assure 'brand name recognition' and a steady trickle of sales. That fact does not make contemporary poetry any less important in literary society, it does, however, curtail its widespread dissemination.
That is where small poetry presses come in: If you investigate their literary offerings, you will find them to be a vast reservoir of contemporary voices that are compelling and mind-broadening, albeit continuously marginalized.

Small and relatively obscure publishers like InstaPLANET Press are not just worthy of, but are indeed dependent on the literary public's support. That support must translate into the act of purchasing small press publications. This is the only way that their survival can be assured.

To purchase your copy of
CIPHERS OF UNCOMMON ORIGIN - Poems By Ana Elsner
see link below.
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- Amendment to this article -
Ana Elsner made the following remarks:

"Thank you for bringing the subject of small independent presses to the reading public's attention. Yes, many small to very small presses cannot hold their heads above the swift current of insolvency. The idealism and ambition with which they started out may not survive the harsh realities of running a business, however small. They fold quietly without leaving so much as a ripple. I have seen this happen before. So what are your options.

First of all, let's be honest, the odds of your poetry being accepted for publication by 'the big guys' are slim unless you are a national poet laureate or have already established a foothold in the business of poetry.

By way of an alternative, you do take a chance when sending your work to be published by a small and relatively unknown press. In my case, I was swept off my feet by the fervor and dedication of the folks at InstaPLANET Press. At the same time, I was aware that they might not make it in the long run. However, I am not contractually bound and retain copyrights so that in the event that they go under, I am free to take my content to another press or incorporate it into another manuscript or do with it whatever I please.

Among the benefits of letting a small press publish your work is that they pay you a much higher share of the profits from sales, up to three times the industry standard. Moreover, after they recovered their initial investment in production and related services, InstaPLANET Press now lets me buy unlimited copies at cost+ % so that I can sell my books myself and can still give the buyer a discount on the full retail price. This works out nicely since I sell many copies at each of my readings when folks want them autographed.

You have to consider that my product is poetry, not exactly a best-seller. The volume of sales will always be limited even if I go with an established publishing house. Sure, they offer better marketing and distribution. But with giving book stores the right to return unsold merchandise and with royalty payments being very modest, I venture a guess that I am getting the same or maybe even more money by operating on a much smaller scale.

Of course, this might play out very differently for authors who produce novels, sci-fi, romances and works in genres that empirically have mass-appeal.

The reason I am sharing these details is that from my experience I can resoundingly recommend small presses to my fellow poets. The profit margin is higher, the cost of buying copies for your own purposes is lower, and you retain sole authority over the fate of your work,"
Ana Elsner

Buying versus Borrowing
A word about Public Libraries
Due to reliance on outside funding and the budgetary and space constraints that derive from it, and in light of a tremendous volume of books submitted, every entry undergoes the most stringent review process by professional librarians and departmental editorial staff before a decision is made to include it in the catalog and give it shelf space. The San Francisco Public Library and the Poets House National Library of American Poetry Books are two venerable institutions. The fact that CIPHERS was selected by both speaks to its significance in contemporary literature.

CIPHERS OF UNCOMMON ORIGIN - Poems By Ana Elsner is available for borrowing

on the West Coast at

The San Francisco Public Library, 100 Larkin Street (at Grove), San Francisco, CA, Third Floor, Poetry Collection (check shelf)

on the East Coast at

Poets House National Library of American Poetry Books, 10 River Terrace, Battery Park, New York, N.Y. (stacks)

: :


CIPHERS can be purchased directly from the publisher
by clicking here

Buy a copy today
and add it to your personal library.

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POETRY (poem)

Ana Elsner starts most of her reading engagements with her poem titled POETRY, which is ideally suited to open the hearts and minds of her audience and prepare them for what is to come.


POETRY

At first

you resist

its power

to throw you off guard,

to strip you

of your defenses,

but without poetry,

what else

could ever reveal

the universal

in the personal,

what else

could ever lift

the blindfold

from

your

soul



© Ana Elsner

From CIPHERS Of Uncommon Origin - Poems By Ana Elsner, Volume I
[reprinted by permission]

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Related: Ana Elsner takes a stand on poetry.

Click to read article

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Looking back (events)

For the past three years Ana Elsner organized and featured in many public events in her ongoing effort to raise the popularity and status of poetry and to bring it before as wide and diverse an audience as possible.

Archive / Images - Caption: Poet Ana Elsner makes her debut at the San Francisco Public Library on June 12, 2007 with a program she designed and titled THE SOUNDING REED. Her invited guest musician was oboist Laura Griffiths.

POET'S STATEMENT

"Poetry is often overlooked among the literary genres. I believe that if I can give newcomers to contemporary poetry a tantalizing taste of it, I will win them over and make them more receptive to it. Toward this end I will leave no proverbial stone unturned," Ana Elsner

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Here are some highlights from 2008.
For event details please click on the 'press release' links.
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- February 2008

POETRY IN BLACK AND WHITE, TWO COLORS - TWO VOICES: devorah major and Ana Elsner join forces at the San Francisco Public Library
For this program, designed to honor Black History Month, Ana Elsner invited devorah major, former Poet Laureate, to participate in a powerful poetry performance dialog demonstrating the coming together of two colors and two distinctive voices.
An excerpt from Elsner's introductory remarks:

"Good evening. ... We are here on the occasion of Black History month. This is the time we pay attention to the realities and concerns of blacks in American society. This is the time we listen to the voices of legends like Martin Luther King and Maya Angelou. And this year it is the time America prepares to elect the first African American president. This is our time to take a giant step in overcoming racism and prejudice and say with one voice and in unison: Yes We Can! ..."

See press release



- April 2008

OBSERVING NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
Bi-lingual poet Ana Elsner celebrates National Poetry Month with a reading of poems by one of the greatest German language poets, Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 – 1926). Elsner read her own Rilke translations as well as those of other translators.
See press release



- June 2008

INVADING THE CAFE SOCIETY - THE ANA ELSNER SHOW
Taking a cue from the 19th century European 'café society', Ana Elsner put on a show of poetry and music at one of the cafes in the famous San Francisco North Beach district.
See press release



- September 2008

THE SF PUBLIC LIBRARY PRESENTS: ANA ELSNER SPEAKS WORDS THAT ARE POEMS
Featured poet Ana Elsner presented a diverse selection of her poems, speaking to all who open their hearts and minds to poetry, followed by conversation and book signing.
An excerpt from Elsner's introductory remarks:

"Good evening. ... I could step behind this lectern and deliver a talk on a particular subject matter, lay it out with logic and exactitude, develop it, cite sources and statistics, and wrap it up neatly with an elegant conclusion. And then you would go home, knowing a little bit more about that particular subject and leave it at that.
But this is not what is going to happen here tonight. Tonight is all about poetry. Poetry touches on many different subjects at once. And when I say 'touches on', I mean 'touches us'.
Poetry is not neutral or topical like a lecture, but rather it is variegated and personal, and will affect each individual differently, that is what makes it so magical.
Poetry is intuitive. It is intuitively conceived by the poet, and is intuitively perceived by you, the audience. ... Tonight you will take home not knowledge, but a lasting emotional impression and hopefully a new inquisitiveness that makes you want to further explore contemporary poetry. That is my aim. ..."

See press release


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Click here to see a typical example of Ana Elsner's strategies to attract a diversified crowd

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Paying tribute to William Oliver Everson

On September 17, 2008, William Oliver Everson aka Brother Antoninus, the "Beat Friar", was inducted into the permanent collection of The Beat Museum in San Francisco. This unique museum displays memorabilia from well-known beat legends such as Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, William S. Burroughs, Neal Cassidy and other prominent beat poets.

A special event was held in William Oliver Everson's honor, featuring testimony by his friends and contemporaries, as well as readings from his poems. Ana Elsner was among the poets and friends who paid tribute to Everson's life and work. Elsner read three of his poems: "O Poets! Shamans of the word!", "The Raid" (1948) and "War Elegy XI" (1943).

An abbreviated biography of William Oliver Everson (1912-1994)

Everson was born in Sacramento, California, of an agnostic Norwegian immigrant bandmaster and printer and a Christian Scientist mother. He was a cannery worker and laborer for the Civilian Conservation Corps from 1932-33 and worked as a farmer in the mid-1930s. After he encountered the poetry of Robinson Jeffers he discovered his own vocation as a poet. As a conscientious objector he was assigned to the forestry service from 1943-46. After WWII he joined the anarcho-pacifist group of poets surrounding Kenneth Rexroth. He became an influential member of the San Francisco Poetry Renaissance and was commonly identified as a Beat poet. In 1951 he joined the Dominican order, was ordained as a Roman Catholic monk and named Brother Antoninus. After leaving the monastery in 1969, he turned his energies toward critical writing, printing, teaching, and editing. During the entire period from 1957 until his death from Parkinson's Disease in 1994, Everson gave countless poetry readings across the United States and Europe and published more than fifty volumes of poetry, prose, autobiographical material and literary criticism.

Among many other poets, Ana Elsner was inspired by Everson's poetic voice. Elsner was honored to have been given the opportunity to be a part of this special tribute.

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Related: Click to read about another legend of The Beat Generation, internationally renowned poet, artist and publisher Lawrence Ferlinghetti

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Another tribute: click to read a poem by Ana Elsner honoring fellow poet Tony Vaughan (1947-2008)


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