Sunday, January 9, 2011

Blanchardstown Megalithic Tomb - Shards


I mentioned my Blanchardstown Megalithic Tomb poems in my last post. Since then I came across this on the Magma poetry magazine blog. It seems that Shard is one of those words which should not be used in a poem. This is because of overuse in the past - a single shard of light, sunlight, moonlight, sky, memory, love, etc.

I'm afraid I've used the word once or twice in my Blanchardstown poems but only in its proper meaning, A piece of broken pottery, especially one found in an archaeological dig. In my poems archaeologists of the future are excavating Blanchardstown and obviously finding shards. Will I leave the word in or take it out? Don't know. Must look at it again.

2 comments:

Peter Goulding said...

I would say its probably overused in its figurative sense but in the context of your poem, its the perfect word!
My personal hate is 'dappled'

Michael Farry said...

Thanks Peter. Agreed re dappled. But Hopkins' "dapple-dawn-drawn falcon" is terrific.