F E ATU RE S
7
APRIL 23, 2010
Award-winning poetry sucks at Bad Feminist Poetry Contest
By Hannah Sherk
Staff Writer
At the sixth annual Bad Feminist Poetry Contest,
held April 15, the men in the audience were not the
only people made to feel uncomfortable.
A record high number of 25 poets slammed
men, underwear, and sometimes each other at the
Greenleaf event.
"If it's bad, but feminist, you get high points,"
explained contest organizer and Assistant Professor
of Religious Studies Eric Mortensen. "If it's a quality
poem, you get low points. And if it's misogynist,
then we just throw you out."
At this year's judging table, staff member Fatma
Dogen, Assistant Professor of Philosophy Lisa
McLeod, and senior Casey Thomas held the scoring
cards. The three faced the difficult task of rewarding
ugly imagery, disjointed rhythms, and contrived
rhymes.
Competition was fierce, and poets used forms from haikus
to free verse, and techniques from spoken word to chocolate
bribes. With poetry scribbled on napkins and margins of
homework, some competitors wrote winning works only
minutes before taking the mic.
This year's first-place prize was awarded to senior Nancy
Klosteridis, who admitted, "I wrote this a half-hour ago in
Lisa McLeod's
class."
After initial
disapproval with
her distracted
student, McLeod
and the other
judges awarded
Klosteridis three
10s for her artful
lamentation
of America's
patriarchal status
quo.
"Stripping free
of my gender
norms/ I'm
ready to blow my
feminist horn,"
Klosteridis read
from the back of a postcard. "I run through full moonlight,
naked, thighs slapping with glee/ Not entirely what
Americans told me to be."
Some poems were, too bad even for a bad poetry
contest. The unruly audience tried, without success, to
clap sophomore Ben Sepsenwol off the stage as he recited,
"Pineapple, pineapple, pineapple good/ I eat feminism
instead of food."
But not all the feminist verses were awful. When first-year
Ashley Escobedo recited her politically charged poem, one
heckling audience member shouted, "You failed at failing!"
For the first time in the history of the Guilford's Bad Feminist
Poetry Contest, the judges rewarded a quality poem.
"We reversed the rules and gave Ashley honorable
mention," said Mortensen. "It was just too good."
Sophomore Arthur Wood admitted to writing his poem
with the help of the Pines' female residents. Points were
deducted from Wood's performance "because clearly,
women did all the work and the guy took the credit," said
McLeod.
"Bras are like constraints of patriarchy upon my
breasts/ Chafing these nipples of sustenance," said Wood
in a denouncement -of gendered underwear. "Thongs are
a wedgie into my world/ Cutting off the circulation of my
womanhood."
Assistant Professor of Religious Studies Jane Redmont
examined identity in a parody of a performance art piece.
Beginning in a flannel shirt, floor-length skirt, and
oversized coat, she left the stage donning a leather
jacket, black lace gloves, and riding crop. Her
performance warranted 10s across the board.
Redmont shared her second-place prize with
colleague Parveen Hasanali, assistant professor
of religious studies, who also utilized props. Like
Redmont, Hasanali receieved three 10s from the
judging panel.
"Warm gooey chocolate, brown and sticky!"
Hasanali yelled, unwrapping and licking a vagina
shaped chocolate while the audience of students
laughed, cheered, and gasped.
But shock-value was not the sole purpose of the
event.
"It's a great space to examine feminism in a critical
way — in an appreciative way," said Thomas. "And
we also get to talk about thumping and thwacking."
Mortensen, the night's master of ceremonies,
acknowledged the delicate line that poets walk in
mocking feminist poetry.
"It's important for people who are learning to negotiate
the boundaries of feminism, and to do so in part through
humor," said Mortensen. "It's a pro-feminist event."
"Each year, everyone does a good job of keeping the lines
clear about laughing at how we do feminism in not-so-
constructive ways, and laughing at feminism," said Thomas.
(Right)Yuri
Woodstock was
one of 25 participants
in the Bad Feminist
Poetry Contest
on April IS. (Left)
Assistant Professors
of Religious Studies
Jane Redmont and
Parveen Hasanali
won second place.
Assistant- Professor of
Religious Studies (Top)
Eric Mortensen
hands the prize
to contest winner
Nancy Klosteridis,
senior - her first
Barbie ever.
WQFEST
WQFeSt brings musicians to Guilford for two-day celebration
Continued from page I
Beginning on April 23 at 9
p.m. in Sternberger Auditorium
and lasting throughout April 24,
WQFeSt will feature 14 bands and
will involve not only the current
WQFS staff but also the alumni
who helped make the station what
it is.
The two WQFS promotions
directors, junior Alethea Leventhal
and sophomore Adam Katzman,
along with first-year DJ Amit
Gordon, were the primary
organizers of the event.
"They have done a lot of
hard work setting up the
contracts required for each band,
establishing a company to run
sound for the event and promoting
the event online and locally," said
WQFS radio personality Josh
Neas, who helped book Chapel
Hill's Lake Inferior for the event.
The event was booked to
coincide with the previously
scheduled performance of The more vocals, a live set, and songs "These guys are Guilford
Tallest Man on Earth, a Swedish that truly highlight the dedication students," said Katzman, "but
folkie enamored of not just Bob and hard work of all members in they know that outside the
Dylan, but general '60s Americana, the band. We've come a long way classroom after hours, it's a whole
"He's one dude and a guitar from simply recording tracks to other thing going on."
and a whole lot of emotion," said incorporating world influences in Superteam opens for a crew of
Katzman
The Friday night
kick-off party features
Guilford's own
Superteam, composed
of MCs Daron "Dante
CK" Whitmore,
senior, and first-year
Beau Young, a.k.a.
Young Prince, as well
as their DJ, senior
Reid Blomquist.
"In preparing for
WQFeSt we have
been experimenting
with new sounds and further
exploring the chemistry of the
band," said Young. "Serendipity
was our first show together so
the experience was monumental.
This performance will include
our music.
"In preparing for WQFeSt we have been
experimenting with new sounds and further
exploring the chemistry of the band."
Beau Young, first-year and member
of hip-hop group Superteam
rappers from Alabama.
"There's
a whole
independent scene
down there blurring
the lines between
mainstream and
underground," said
Katzman. "They have
day jobs so all the
rap about grinding
and hustling is
retrospective analysis,
an attempt to process
and transcend."
The mostly hip-
As for future works, Dante CK hop-oriented line-up will play in
is releasing his solo EP soon, and Sternberger Auditorium, starting
Young Prince is working on a mix April 23 at 9 p.m. In addition to
tape for the summer that includes Superteam, the Friday night line-
collaborations with other Guilford up includes Kristmas, G-Mane,
musicians. Jackie Chain and G-Side.
The April 24 concert starts at
5 p.m. on Founders lawn and
features Mixxed Signals, Savant,
Acidosis, Lake Inferior, Future
Islands and Greensboro's own
Casual Curious and the Bronzed
Chorus.
The final two bands of April
24, Nurses and The Tallest Man
on Earth, will play in Sternberger
Auditorium.
"Having been present for the
30th anniversary festival in 2000,
it's nice to see the station still a
strong force in the community
at Guilford and in Greensboro at
large," said Neas. "I know plenty
of people are excited to see a rising
artist like (The) Tallest Man on
Earth here in Greensboro when it
would normally involve traveling
to Chapel Hill or further."
It all stands to be a fabulous
weekend for the Guilford
community. Everyone should
come out and enjoy a taste of what
WQFS has to offer.