美国国家公共电台 NPR Joy Harjo Becomes The First Native American U.S. Poet Laureate

 

MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:

The United States has a new poet laureate. She is Joy Harjo, the first Native American to hold the position. In making the announcement, Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden called Harjo a champion of the art of poetry whose, quote, "inventive lyricism helps us reimagine who we are." Harjo, who is also a musician and a memoirist² - what doesn't she do? Well, what she did was speak with NPR's Lynn Neary.

LYNN NEARY, BYLINE³: Being named poet laureate was exciting but completely unexpected, says Joy Harjo.

JOY HARJO: I think the first thing that comes to mind is that it's such an honoring for Native people in this country when we've been so disappeared and disregarded. And yet we're the root cultures.

NEARY: Harjo, a member of the Muscogee Creek⁴ Nation, has always drawn⁵ on Native American myths and stories in her work. She says that's because her culture is just part of who she is. And poetry draws her closer to it.

HARJO: So it doesn't necessarily become a self-conscious thing. It's just there. You have your culture and you're in it, but you're also in this American culture, and that's another layer. So there's always all of these imprints⁷, but, of course, the primal⁸ imprint⁶ - the primal imprint for all of us is being a human being on Earth.

NEARY: As a Native American woman, Harjo says it's inevitable⁹ that she would be innately¹⁰ political, but she doesn't view the position of poet laureate as political. She says she's always been an ambassador for poetry and wants to continue in that role. But she's also aware that she's taking on a prominent national position at a time of great division in our country. She believes poetry has the power to heal.

HARJO: Poetry has been one of my fiercest teachers with language, with sound, shot through the heart. It becomes a way to communicate. So we're all part of a large poem, a large story. And if you look with perspective, the story all fits together. And one way to find those connections is with poetry.

NEARY: This excerpt¹¹ from the poem "The Fight" reflects Joy Harjo's desire to find common ground.

HARJO: (Reading) I grow tired of the heartache of every small and large war passed from generation to generation. But it is not in me to give up. I was taught to give honor to the house of the warriors¹², which cannot exist without the house of the peacemakers.

NEARY: Harjo is the author of eight books of poetry, with a new collection due out in August. She has also written a memoir¹, and at the age of 40, she took up the saxophone.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

HARJO: (Playing saxophone).

UNIDENTIFIED SINGER: (Vocalizing).

NEARY: Now when Harjo performs, she often sets her own poetry to music and includes Native American instruments and musicians.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

HARJO: I think of the lush stillness of the end of a world sung into place by singers and the rattle¹³ of turtles in the dark morning.

NEARY: Harjo doesn't yet know exactly what she wants to do as poet laureate, but she's got some ideas.

HARJO: One thing I've always wanted to do is have cowboys and Indians poetry reading (laughter). Just there's a lot of Indian cowboys and vice¹⁴ versa, I'm sure. So I really believe if people sat, you know, together and hear their deepest feelings and thoughts beyond any political divisiveness, it makes connections.

NEARY: Joy Harjo takes over as poet laureate in the fall, succeeding Tracy K. Smith, who held the post for two years. Lynn Neary, NPR News, Washington.

1 memoir   

n.[pl.]回忆录，自传；记事录

参考例句：

• He has just published a memoir in honour of his captain.他刚刚出了一本传记来纪念他的队长。
• In her memoir,the actress wrote about the bittersweet memories of her first love.在那个女演员的自传中，她写到了自己苦乐掺半的初恋。

2 memoirist   

n.传记，回忆录，追思录

参考例句：

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 creek   

n.小溪，小河，小湾

参考例句：

• He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
• People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。

5 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

6 imprint   

n.印痕，痕迹；深刻的印象；vt.压印，牢记

参考例句：

• That dictionary is published under the Longman imprint.那本词典以朗曼公司的名义出版。
• Her speech left its imprint on me.她的演讲给我留下了深刻印象。

7 imprints   

n.压印( imprint的名词复数 )；痕迹；持久影响

参考例句：

• With each step he took, his boots left muddy imprints on the floor. 她父亲的毡靴一移动，就在地板上压了几个泥圈圈。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说
• In Freudian theory, the imprints are memories, albeit unconscious ones. 在佛洛伊德理论中，这些痕迹就是记忆，只不过它们是无意识的。 来自互联网

8 primal   

adj.原始的；最重要的

参考例句：

• Jealousy is a primal emotion.嫉妒是最原始的情感。
• Money was a primal necessity to them.对于他们，钱是主要的需要。

9 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

10 innately   

adv.天赋地；内在地，固有地

参考例句：

• Innately conservative, Confucius was fascinated by the last of these disciplines. 由于生性保守，孔子特别推崇“礼”。 来自英汉非文学 - 文明史
• Different individuals are innately fitted for different kinds of employment. 不同的人适合不同的职业，这是天生的。 来自互联网

11 excerpt   

n.摘录，选录，节录

参考例句：

• This is an excerpt from a novel.这是一部小说的摘录。
• Can you excerpt something from the newspaper? 你能从报纸上选录些东西吗？

12 warriors   

武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I like reading the stories ofancient warriors. 我喜欢读有关古代武士的故事。
• The warriors speared the man to death. 武士们把那个男子戳死了。

13 rattle   

v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓

参考例句：

• The baby only shook the rattle and laughed and crowed.孩子只是摇着拨浪鼓，笑着叫着。
• She could hear the rattle of the teacups.她听见茶具叮当响。

14 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。