“I’m not performing the work; it performs me.”
Her presence fills the room. Full of energy M. NourbeSe Philip presents her work at Vancouver Island University on Thursday October 27. “I’m nervous. I’m always nervous.” NourbeSe says before delivering her lecture as part of the annual Gustafson Distinguished Poet’s Lecture at VIU.
She thus joins a long tradition of poetry readings on campus hosted by the Chair of Poetry and the Gustafson Trust since 1998.
First, she is being introduced by the chair of English Paul Watkins, who describes her and her work as “getting to the core of things.”
As she originates from the Caribbean, NourbeSe has been concerned with issues of colonialism, slavery and traditional structures throughout her life. These realities come out again and again in her work as well. Add to that a “deep concern” with the English language, “Like an abused child loves its parents, I love the English language, my mother tongue.”, Philip says.
The combination of language and the political themes in her poems, essays and prose is also evident in her most recent work, Zong!. The book-length poem was created entirely from the words of the case report about a mass murder of Africans on a slavery ship in the 18th century. NourbeSe wants to “let the text breathe for those who can’t” and by that honor those who died on the ship. What she means by that becomes clear when she reads the words together with the audience, the finale of her performance. A rhythm, an energy is created that gives the impression that the text is brought to life.
References
https://www.nourbese.com/poetry/zong-3/
https://ah.viu.ca/gustafson-trust
https://ah.viu.ca/gustafson-trust/about-trust
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._NourbeSe_Philip#Awards
