Michael Harper (1938-2016) was an acclaimed poet, educator, and editor. Before his death in 2016, he had published ten books of poetry. Harper was known for his use of the jazz and blues in his poems, specifically regarding rhythm and syncopation, while also incorporating famous musicians into his poems. By the time of the 1994 conference, Harper had published eight books of poetry and was serving as the poet laureate of Rhode Island. He read, “Last Affair: Bessie’s Blues Song” during Thursday’s Keynote Speeches. In this poem, Harper draws on the death of Bessie Smith, a blues musician, and uses the blues tradition to embody her and tell her story. As you watch the video and read the poem, think about why Harper used the blues tradition to tell Smith’s story instead of using a different style.

Bessie Smith (1894-1937) was an influential blues musician of her era. Her music was centered around themes such as poverty, intra-racial conflict, female sexuality, and love. Between 1923-1933, Smith recorded one-hundred-and-sixty cuts, recording with artists like Louis Armstrong, Coleman Hawkins, and Fletcher Henderson. She died in Mississippi due to injuries sustained in a car accident in 1937, right on the edge of the Swing Era, where she was hoping to make her musical return. Smith was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2006. As you watch the video and read the poem, focus on how Michael S. Harper incorporates her into the poem.

1. How has music influenced you in your life?

2. Have you ever lost someone? How did it affect you? How did you get through it?

3. Think about your own use of music and your moods—do you listen to music to change your moods? Or to feel deeper? Explain.

1. Blues music in the blues tradition is related to jazz and uses something called “call-and-response” and rhymed narratives. Do you see these elements in “Last Affair: Bessie’s Blues Song”? If so, how is Harper using them?

2. How does the theme of this poem relate to the recurring themes of Bessie’s music [poverty, intra-racial conflict, female sexuality]? How do you think these themes would be received in the music industry of today? Do you think the reaction was different back in the 1920s? Explain.

| STRUCTURE

1. Structure is the way that the poem is organized. Harper structures this poem in the style of a blues song, using the italicized stanzas as refrains. How does this format change the way the poem is read? How would its meaning change if the refrain was removed?

2. Why do you think that Harper removes certain letters, as in the case of “fun’ral” in the fifth stanza? How does this affect how the poem relates to the musical elements of the poem?

| IMAGERY

1. Imagery is the way that the poet uses language to paint a picture for the reader. Find what you think is the most striking piece of imagery and write about it. Why did this stand out to you? How does it make you feel?

2. Why do you think that Harper uses the imagery he does? What does the poem gain from having darker imagery? What does it lose?

3. Read the lines “Fifty dollar record / cut the vein in her neck / fool about her money / toll her black trainwreck,” What do you think Harper is saying about Bessie? How do these lines paint a picture of her life?

1. Take a line or two from one of your favorite songs and work it into a ten-line poem.

OR

2. Pick one of your favorite musicians and write a ten-line poem about their music and what it means to you.

OR

3. Take ten minutes to write a poem in the style of one of your favorite music genres. How does your genre depict who you are?