ok, shoot me, but on the timbre and accent scale, this reading registers pretty much -0 on a scale of 1 to 10. Courtesy of Poem of the Day (and it’s a long one):
Fever 103° by and read by Sylvia Plath
3 min 16 secs
She is totally totally in love with the words, though – you can hear her absolutely relish and adore each one.
So, yes — I don’t know.
September 6, 2011 at 1:44 pm
As a long time devotee of Plath I’m biased. I know plenty of people don’t like her delivery. They think she sounds starchy, or false. For me, the love of the language comes through–the passion that exults in the juiciness and the anger that bites her words off–sells me.
September 6, 2011 at 1:49 pm
Yes. we really should not be swayed by accent and timbre,as I said in an earlier post on this issue. And, despite disliking Plath’s accent and the timbre of her voice, I can definitely see and appreciate the passion and the sheer good-readingness in her delivery.
So – I dunno… QED…?
Thanks for stopping by, Sarah!
September 6, 2011 at 2:02 pm
She’s like the poetry-reading equivalent of an opera singer — a too-muchness here that I sense could be quite addictive.
September 6, 2011 at 2:22 pm
“a too-muchness that could be addictive”–I think that’s my attitude towards life! Plath as opera is good too. I’m surprised no one’s written an opera about her life yet.
September 6, 2011 at 10:22 pm
wow, yes – what material!
September 6, 2011 at 2:27 pm
There’s an emotional intensity to her reading that had me absolutely transfixed. I couldn’t separate that out from the timbre, accent, pronunciation, or clear relish in the sonic shapes of the words themselves. I loved her work for many years, then let go. This reading has renewed my adoration and I must go explore more of her readings.
September 6, 2011 at 10:23 pm
Hey Brenda! Yes -’emotional intensity’ is right – she absolutely inhabits the poem she is reading.
September 6, 2011 at 10:42 pm
That gives me the shivers, Nic! Yes, that’s it.