THE LOOK & SHAPE OF POETRY: Found Poetry & the Cento

Found Poetry “Found” poetry is a type of poetry that takes existing texts and reforms, reshapes, and reimagines them as poems It is a literary equivalent of “collage”; you are making or creating a poem out of other found texts Examples of other texts: newspaper articles, advertisements, song lyrics, speeches, street signs, billboards

Found Poetry Examples: -- from a newspaper ad for an online university “65th YEAR HIGH SCHOOL”   Graduate within a year. You can do it! Teenagers, adults too for free information. Day Program starts -- Night Program starts -- it’s never too late founded in 65th year. Call now. You can do it! Morning afternoon classes evening classes starts within a year. Call now for High School. (16 years or over) preparatory founded in cosmopolitan 1934. Examples: “The Unknown” As we know, There are known knowns. There are things we know we know. We also know There are known unknowns. That is to say We know there are some things We do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns, The ones we don't know We don't know. -- from a newspaper ad for an online university -- from U.S. Dept. of Defense briefings by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld

Cento A cento is a poetic form that originated in the 3rd or 4th century The word “cento” is from Latin for “patchwork” The cento is made up of lines from poems by other poets. These lines are shaped and rearranged into a poetic form.

Cento Example: “WHITMAN UNPLUGGED”   The smoke of my own breath, Choking on the spittle of ejecting death, Was seized by the spirit that trails the lines underfoot. I let loose the chords, The sound of the belched words of my voice, The burps of choice, intestinal degrees of relief. Only the lull I like, the hum of your valved voice. The open-close monotone of rhythm with regard. Is that it from your liquid rims & wet sands? Is that disposable utterance a prelude to dance? I am a dance ... Play up there! the fit is whirling me fast. Call on horns & keys all swirled up with beat & a thousand singers, a thousand songs, clearer, Seared with lyric & dew-drop hypothesis. With the thousand responsive songs at random …. This poem was made up entirely of lines from various poems by Walt Whitman

Cento Example #2: “Pop Song Cento” June 25, 2015 It's so hard to sleep. I'm like, "Hey, what's up? Hello." And I know she'll be the death of me, at least we'll both be numb, Like a small boat on the ocean. Be my woman girl, and I'll be your man. Do you recall, not long ago– Oh don't you dare look back. 'Cause baby now we got bad blood, When I need motivation. It's been a long day without you, my friend. This poem was made up entirely of the 1st lines of the Top Ten pop songs for June 25, 2015

using lines from the poems in your packet. Your Assignment Your assignment is to write … a CENTO of at least 25 lines, using lines from the poems in your packet.