'Why a four-year-old child could understand this report. Run out and find me a four-year-old child.'

A common complaint of poetry pundits is that experimental poetry tends to entail a humourless flaunting of critical theory. Yet within this field, there are a number of poets that make use of humour as a literary tactic. How exactly is humour used in experimental poetry and what are its effects? In what ways could we theorize humour in terms of poetry and language in general? Is humour useful as a destabilizing device, or is it politically benign? Can humour make difficult poetry more accessible to a general readership, or does it provide an excuse to dismiss this work?

We are seeking submissions of essays for a special issue of Open Letter regarding these issues.

Details at Crg Hill. Tom Jenks would be near the top of my list.