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American Literary Legend John Updike and More April 15, 2007 7:39AM UTC
Ron Price 11 Posts	SINGING ONE'S SONG--WITH AN ITCH American literary legend John Updike, creator of forty books, was pondering as to whether he had done his best, sung his song, had his say. As he approached sixty-five he said he felt a certain panicked awareness of what he hadn't put in his books: "almost everything" he mused. "Worlds are not in them. In the face of this vacuity arises the terrible itch to--what else?" he continued to ponder.1 I, too, am conscious that there is much that is not in my poetry. But, given its function, its purpose, what I am trying to do and say through these thousands of poems, I have no concern, no worry, about what is not in my poetic creations. I have sung my song, had my say, done my best, although only a small handful have read any of it. In fact, in some ways, my problem is the opposite to Updike's. I have written so much poetry that I feel the reader is faced with overload should he or she really want to try to take it all in. If I have any itch at all it is that the coterie that reads my poetry will be so small as to make both me and my poetry irrelevant to the general public. -Ron Price with thanks to Gail Sheehy, Passages for Men, Simon and Schuster, Sydney, 1998, p.217. I've defined myself, staked out some turf, some individuality, set out the happenings of my life and connected them with my religion, my society and the several landscapes of my days. Through poetry I consciously prepared to replace what I have lost in zest, energy and joy through years of wearing down at the edges in this abode of dust, being consumed away, for weary of life was I. Ron Price 16 February 2002 Login to reply

Replies to American Literary Legend John Updike and More

Re: American Literary Legend John Updike and More - Jul 11 5:49AM UTC
Ron Price 11 Posts	I post the item below simply because it's my most recent prose-poem.-Ron ELYSIUM Part 1: Elysium is a 2013 American dystopian science fiction action thriller film. It was written, directed, and co-produced by Neill Blomkamp, and starring Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Alice Braga and Sharlto Copley. It was released on 9 August 2013, in both conventional and IMAX Digital theaters; I saw the film on TV on 9 July 2015 here in Australia. In my 16 years of retirement from a 50 year student and paid employment life, 1949 to 1999, I have found that, if I wait, the movies and DVDs that come onto the market eventually turn-up on television. This film takes place on both a ravaged Earth, and a luxurious space habitat on a rotating wheel space station called Elysium. The space station reminded me of the one in 2001 Space Odyssey. The film explores political and sociological themes such as immigration, overpopulation, health care, exploitation, the justice system, and social class issues. Although the film's story is set in 2154, the director-producer has stated that the film is a comment on the contemporary human condition. "Everybody wants to ask me lately about my predictions for the future," the director said, "No, no, no. This isn't science fiction. This is today. This is now." Part 2: I leave it to readers with the interest to find the details about the plot, cast, production, critical reception, and general details. Wikipedia has an informative overview of the film. I have taken an interest in the leading science fiction authors of the last two centuries from Mary Shelley to George Lucas. In many ways these authors have predicted and, accordingly, influenced the development of scientific advancements by inspiring many readers to assist in transforming their futuristic visions into everyday reality. The stories of these two centuries of science-fiction are now told in cyberspace through: film clips, re-enactments, illustrations and interviews. Back in the 1950s I joined the Baha'i Faith which, among other things, is a religion with the very future in its bones. In my 60 years of association with this newest of the Abrahamic religions I have found it has often been criticized as far too utopian with an unrealistic picture of the future. Perhaps this is yet another reason why I have taken an interest in the genre of science fiction. Part 3: You're getting older Jodi, but there is still plenty of bloom on the rose. Matt's in his element pushing his body, his exo-skeleton, as far as it could be pushed. I said to myself, as I watched this film: "this is not 2054... this is now." Science fiction & fact into conversation with one another. I tried to write sci-fi back in the late 1980s, but it was not for me, and neither was novel-writing. I settled for essay-writing, poetry, autobiography, & internet posting on 1000s of topics with millions of words. I was not a writer of sci-fi: no Isaac Asimov, no Robert Heinlein, nor a Jules Verne...We all have to find our place in space, our skills, our abilities, our raison d'etre for living in this time, this climacteric of history. Ron Price 11/7/'15. Login to reply \| Condense

Re: American Literary Legend John Updike and More - Jul 11 5:49AM UTC

Ron Price
11 Posts

I post the item below simply because it's my most recent prose-poem.-Ron

ELYSIUM

Part 1:

Elysium is a 2013 American dystopian science fiction action thriller film. It was written, directed, and co-produced by Neill Blomkamp, and starring Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Alice Braga and Sharlto Copley. It was released on 9 August 2013, in both conventional and IMAX Digital theaters; I saw the film on TV on 9 July 2015 here in Australia. In my 16 years of retirement from a 50 year student and paid employment life, 1949 to 1999, I have found that, if I wait, the movies and DVDs that come onto the market eventually turn-up on television.

This film takes place on both a ravaged Earth, and a luxurious space habitat on a rotating wheel space station called Elysium.  The space station reminded me of the one in 2001 Space Odyssey. The film explores political and sociological themes such as immigration, overpopulation, health care, exploitation, the justice system, and social class issues. Although the film's story is set in 2154, the director-producer has stated that the film is a comment on the contemporary human condition. "Everybody wants to ask me lately about my predictions for the future," the director said, "No, no, no. This isn't science fiction. This is today. This is now."
Part 2:

I leave it to readers with the interest to find the details about the plot, cast, production, critical reception, and general details. Wikipedia has an informative overview of the film.  I have taken an interest in the leading science fiction authors of the last two centuries from Mary Shelley to George Lucas. In many ways these authors have predicted and, accordingly, influenced the development of scientific advancements by inspiring many readers to assist in transforming their futuristic visions into everyday reality. The stories of these two centuries of science-fiction are now told in cyberspace through: film clips, re-enactments, illustrations and interviews.

Back in the 1950s I joined the Baha'i Faith which, among other things, is a religion with the very future in its bones. In my 60 years of association with this newest of the Abrahamic religions I have found it has often been criticized as far too utopian with an unrealistic picture of the future. Perhaps this is yet another reason why I have taken an interest in the genre of science fiction.

Part 3:

You're getting older Jodi,
but there is still plenty of
bloom on the rose. Matt's
in his element pushing his
body, his exo-skeleton, as
far as it could be pushed.

I said to myself, as I watched
this film: "this is not 2054...
this is now." Science fiction
& fact into conversation with
one another.  I tried to write
sci-fi back in the late 1980s,
but it was not for me, and
neither was novel-writing.

I settled for essay-writing,
poetry, autobiography, &
internet posting on 1000s
of topics with millions of
words.  I was not a writer
of sci-fi: no Isaac Asimov,
no Robert Heinlein, nor a
Jules Verne...We all have
to find our place in space,
our skills, our abilities, our
raison d'etre for living in this
time, this climacteric of history.

Ron Price
11/7/'15.

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