Flarfists!!!

Thanks for your insights Keith. And thanks to the class for participating so much. You crazy flarfists you! I too found myself understanding and enjoying the poems in __Deer Head Nation__ more after engaging in flarf myself. There’s nothing like convicting society with their own words and even sometimes admitting that we are Them (or at least a part of it, sometimes. Not all the time. Or we wouldn’t think it nearly as funny). I can understand what you’re getting at with regard to the product vs. process question because the anger is often left under the surface. But my feeling is that’s pretty intentional for a couple of reasons. One is that extreme, irrational anger is another facet of contemporary society to be mocked in these poems because its often red-neckish or sensationalistic as in Larry King saying “fufill the pact, maggot! face him!” in “Keep Honking, I’m Reloading.” Another reason might be that being hit over the head with too much anger on the surface would detract from the tone of bewilderment at and the irony of the situations. Humor seems vital to making the points of these poems more acceptable and palatable yet more insidious. It lowers our defenses, whereas often anger raises them. Yet it also makes the horror more horrifying.
Thanks,
Eve