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A review by hanamarma
The Great Fires: Poems, 1982-1992 by Jack Gilbert
1.0
Gilbert is a master of poetics, but it seems to me he wasn't a very nice person. Many of his poems are misogynist, full of a very arrogant male gaze (see "Steel Guitars," "The Milk of Paradise," "The Container for the Thing Contained," "In Umbria"). It's as if he genuinely believed all women were there simply for him to admire as objects. Very disturbing.
I also felt like most of these poems were full of pining, which I found annoying. He didn't feel grounded in reality. It was like he was writing from somewhere up in the clouds so he didn't have to get his hands dirty with the messiness of real life.
Of course, I can't say he's a bad poet. He's not. Some of his poems are very well crafted, but for me, that's not enough.
I also felt like most of these poems were full of pining, which I found annoying. He didn't feel grounded in reality. It was like he was writing from somewhere up in the clouds so he didn't have to get his hands dirty with the messiness of real life.
Of course, I can't say he's a bad poet. He's not. Some of his poems are very well crafted, but for me, that's not enough.