Neophobia vs. Neophilia vs. Avanthackitus

Ron Silliman has done some thinking about what role Merwin might play as the poet laureate, positioning him (hopefully) somewhere between "the bully," Charles Simic, and "the whisper," Louise Glück:

Merwin has never struck me as a bully. I am however concerned that his tenure might prove as much of a whisper as Glück’s. At a time when the funding of literature and the arts is under attack in virtually every state budget, another ghost as laureate would represent a real abandonment of responsibility. I hope I’m wrong.

This musing prompted a raft of commentary, and then further thinking from Siliman on the "School of Quietude" legacy (of the U.S. Poet Laureates and beyond), specifically how the "School of Quietude" would do well to read up on their history:

I know, whenever I use the phrase School of Quietude in some pointed fashion, what kind of response I’m going to get, and the comments that sprouted around my note on the elevation of W.S. Merwin to the PLOTUS on Friday were unusual only in the increased number of defenders who turned up to rescue me from those who would simply prefer to tar & feather anyone for the sin of characterizing one of the broad traditions of American poetry. I do appreciate their presence & their willingness to suffer foolishness on my behalf.

Which has prompted Bill Knott (among others) to do some name calling of his own:

Silliman's blog is chugging on today about us sorry SOQs being quote NEOPHOBES:

you know, the usual guff from the big bad wuffpuff—

But Silliman himself, at least when it comes to publishing,

is a neophobe.

He, like most of his fellow Avanthacks, is a dead-tree poet,

issuing his books in hardcopy only

July is shaping up to be a zoological bonanza in the poetry world!