History and the Imagination Combined:
Contemporary Cleopatra
The poems in Cleopatra in the Night, by Bruce Feld, deal with
the historical and literary figure we know as Cleopatra, Ptolemy, Queen
of Egypt. But Cleopatra here is also a modern character, a symbol of modern--or
timeless--human powers and frailties. She represents, of course, mysterious
romantic attraction, sexual power, hubris, and female strength. Also on
board are the other players, Antony and Caesar, who are similarly ancient
and modern. The poems are largely set in the Mediterranean of romantic history,
but they are as modern, contemporary, and American as AIDS and Mormons.
These poems are playful, lush, humorous, lusty. They are about flawed,
foolish, heroic human beings with their private problems and their problematic
relationships. They are wildly entertaining and thought-provoking. They
show a good blend of intelligence, education, and feeling.
Also included in Cleopatra in the Night are selected other poems
by Bruce Feld, and here we meet old friends and are introduced to new ones:
Mozart, Sappho, Bertrand Russell, Stonewall Jackson, Chicago, New York,
and more. And the entire collection captures the sensuous and provocative
nature of its subject: poetry and Cleopatra--and historical figures who
haunt our thoughts and live on in history and our imaginations. Cleopatra
in the Night reveals a poet's meanderings as he, and we, ponder what
we know and remember and imagine in history. |
