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Poet Wilner visits SCSU
Eleanor Wilner shared history, tips and poetry during presentation
 Media Credit: Blair Schlichte/Staff Photographer Poet and social activist Eleanor Wilner read her poems to a group of students Tuesday in the Atwood Voyageur Room. Wilner was brought to SCSU by the Upper Mississippi Harvest staff, the Women�s Center, Multicultural student services and UPB literary arts communication.
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It snowed Tuesday, but that did not prevent more than 60 people from attending a poetry reading by Eleanor Wilner in the Voyageur Room in Atwood Center.
Sally Jo Sorensen, adviser of Upper Mississippi Harvest, a magazine written by students for students, introduced the poet.
"When I was a very young woman, in my 20s, Eleanor Wilner was the first established writer to take my work seriously. It made me feel validated as a poet," Sorensen said
Sorensen said the respect she, as well as others, received from Wilner, was so invaluable to them at that youthful age.
Wilner stood up, grabbed her new book, Reversing the Spell, and said, "I finally have one (book) thick enough to double as a weapon," giving it a whack on the podium.
Wilner's readings were given, however, to cudgel the audience members' brains.
Hesitant in front of such a large audience, she thought a writer would be someone "who stayed in her room and wears the same sweater all her life."
Wilner, true to this month's celebration of Women's History, gave voice to "Her story," rather than history.
One story, or poem, was about the mother wolf's point of view of feeding milk to Romulus and Remus from her teats.
Another story was about Lot's wife who turned to look back one more time "at the city she loved." Wilner said the fleeing lady did not get far but turned into a pillar of salt. However, Wilner said Lot's wife continued to nourish the animals left behind. "They licked and licked and licked her 'till she was just a phallic symbol."
One more story is how God didn't ask Abraham for his son to sacrifice as a burnt offering. This poem Wilner read is about how God asked Sarah, Abraham's wife and the mother to Isaac, for her child as a burnt offering.
With Wilner reading Sarah's answer, "No! Not a chance. It's not going to happen," in her tone of voice, the biblical story came alive.
Wilner's emphasis in places in the poetry she read continued to bring meaning to the audience. Stressing and using eye contact, Wilner made the audience join with her into the "mind" of the story.
Besides reading as a sage, Wilner also is able to describe accurately people's feelings. In one poem about her depressed friend, she "wallows in warm excrement," and described her friend's heart as a "restless beast."
Wilner ended the reading with a poem about Anne Sullivan teaching Helen Keller how to draw water as a symbol.
Wilner also made an appearance at The Write Place in the early afternoon for a question and answer session for aspiring writers and inquisitive students.
Wilner said writing poetry about something you don't already know about is useful. "Get away from where you are."
She challenges students that if they write enough, writing can become "a place you can trust."
However, Wilner said, "It might take years to figure out what your poem means."
Wilner shared this story with the writers: A man admired her poetry and loved to read it, but asked her why she always wrote about women.
"Because I am one," was Wilner's answer.
Tom Meyer can be reached at: [email protected]
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