Poet Paula Claire has made a controversial exit from the Oxford Professor of Poetry “competition” on the grounds that it’s become curiouser and curiouser. First they didn’t process her application, then they called here a performer and artist, then they processed a heap of further applications.
So how important is it whether you’re called poet or performer?
On the Today programme, Paula Claire was asked why is it such a big deal what they called her. It’s clear she feels that calling her an artist, when the five male candidates were all called poets, was taking poetic licence a stanza too far.
Does it really matter? Well yes. There is probably an element of what Evan Davis described as “paperwork cock-up” in the application process, but there’s also more than a whiff of good old-fashioned, “don’t the ladies look lovely in their hats”. True, Paula Claire’s argument that people will have been downloading inaccurate information about her on to their mobile phones, is slightly precious – surely they’ll only have done that if they’re really interested in the whole thing and therefore will already know she’s a poet. But I agree with her that in the context of this specific role,the context makes what she’s called very important.
In a further twist, there has been stamping of feet elsewhere. Michael Horowitz has said that examples by Roger Lewis (writer, biographer and, presumably, poet) of his poetic emotion are “more emblematic of pseudointellectual chutzpah than Parnassian authority”. All very well, Michael, but you try rhyming any of that.
The net result of all the brouhaha so far is that this somewhat arcane position has been brought into popular consciousness. In addition, previously open to a mere 500-ish voters, the process has dragged itself into the webosphere and now 300,000 Oxford graduates are eligible to vote online. LOL as they say. Carry on like this and they might win best performer (oops) at next year’s BAFTAs.
Anyway, as candidates seem to be appearing and disappearing off the list like magic eye images, here’s my bid:
The dreaming spires
Seek Chair’s new poet
But all involved
Seem keen to blow it.
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