Shadow and Light Poetry

too many guns bop poem

Too many Guns Bop Poem

In the Disunited States of America,
Land of the Free,
And the home of the brave.
There are more guns.
Than people,
And guns kill daily.

R there are way too many guns

Yet after every gun massacre,
The NRA and their paid stogies.
Flood the airways,
Saying now is not the time
To talk about guns.
It is not a gun situation.
And they offer useless prayers,
The gun ghosts cry in the wind.

There are way too many guns

When will this madness end?
When will we be free of the constant fear,
Of mad gunmen in our midst?
Running amuck and killing people.
When will politicians do something.
Other than offering crocodile-tears-laced prayers?

There are way too many guns.



The Bop



BRIEF HISTORY


I was first drawn to the bop poetry form because it made me think about music and dancing. While researching the form I was drawn further to it because of its initial use as a poetry writing exploratory tool. Now, I think it’s just plain fun to play with the form.


The Bop was created by Michael S. Weaver (aka Afaa Michael Weaver) in 1997. As mentioned above, he invented the form for his students for poetry practice. The name of the poetry form came from a word used around the area where he grew up in Baltimore. “[B]op referred to the way a man in particular walked down the street. It was his signature to the world!” Mr. Weaver continues with, “[a]s a poetic forms the bop may be seen as the way a poet presents himself or herself to the world as a performance” (Wig German and Menschen, 190).



MUST HAVES


I found two variations of the bop. There is the original 3-stanza bop and the 4-stanza variation. Each type of bop utilizes a repeated line after each stanza.


*Standard Bop*


--Three stanzas. The first and third stanzas are six lines, and the second stanza is eight lines. There is a line repeated after each stanza for a total of 23 lines.

--Topic should either argue an issue or celebrate something (person, place, thing, emotion, etcetera). The stanzas progress the topic. The first stanza states the issue or the object of celebration. The second explores the issue or object of celebration. The final stanza resolves the issue or is the celebration of the object in progress.

--The repeated line can be “taken from popular music or created by the poet” (Wig German and Menschen, 190). See ‘OF NOTE’ section for more on this.



*Extended Bop Variation*


--Four stanzas. The first, third, and fourth stanzas are six lines each, and the second stanza is eight lines. There is a line repeated after each stanza for a total of 30 lines.

--The topic of the extended bop tends to argue an issue. Just as in the standard bop, the stanzas progress the topic. The first stanza states the issue. The second explores the issue. The third stanza tries to resolve the issue. The final stanza then notes that the issue is not resolved.

--Just as in the standard bop, the repeated line can be “taken from popular music or created by the poet” (Wig German and Menschen, 190). See the ‘OF NOTE’ section for more on this.



COULD HAVES or WHAT IS THE POET’S CHOICE IN ALL THIS?


--Any rhyme scheme, including no rhyme scheme.

--Any meter, including no set meter.



OF NOTE


There are two things you want to keep in mind. In any poetry using a refrain, the poet wants it to make an impact. Think carefully about what line you want to repeat through your bop. Next, if you use a line from music that isn’t in the public domain, be careful about copyright laws. In the public domain or not, please remember to cite your source. This is a non-issue when the repeated line is from your creation.



SOURCE NOTES:


Wig German, Scott, and David Menschen. Wingbeats: Exercises and Practice in Poetry. 1st. Austin, TX: Dos Gatos Press, 2011. Print.

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/5773