At first, the some-reason audible gasps between the lines were a bit disenfranchising to hear, but as his delivery became more understood and I got what he was getting at, I think his breathing actually added an entirely new layer to the poem itself. He discusses addiction, satisfaction, being trapped, and what it's like to be like that through the eyes of Wile E. Coyote as he chases and ruminates upon the Road Runner. Pondering the flat tunnels, giant magnets, rockets, the times he's been diced up, exploded, pancaked, and destroyed, he turns the character into an evangelical torch of addiction-fueled inspiration.
This vocal inflection is also made much more prevalent when he tones it down throughout; where the breaths are not so obvious, and the lines flow together more just before the booming crescendo of the next stanza. This is a great example of how to use your voice as a dynamic tool, instead of a medium for getting your poem through a microphone. In many open mics we have on campus, there tends to be a theme of the readers; a monotonous, analogue voice that recites words without any inflection of their own accord. They don't breathe life into the works that they bring. I think if they see this post, and this video, they'll understand better what I'm talking about. The transduction of a poem from script to wind is an art in and of itself, and Shane nails it in my opinion.
This isn't so much a discussion about the poem Mr. Hawley made, but it did spur a group discussion about vocal dynamics in poetry; thought it would be good to share a bit on here about it, too.
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