Monday, May 12, 2008

L-Awto-intervista... u awto-poeżija - Jim Morrison

Auto-interview

I think the interview is the new art form. I think the self-interview is the essence of creativity. Asking yourself questions and trying to find answers. The writer is just answering a series of unuttered questions.

It’s similar to answering questions on a witness stand. It’s that strange area where you try and pin down something that happened in the past and try honestly to remember what you were trying to do. It’s a crucial mental exercise. An interview will often give you a chance to confront your mind with questions, which to me is what art is all about. An interview also gives you the chance to try and eliminate all of those space fillers... you should try to be explicit, accurate, to the point... no bullshit. The interview form has antecedents in the confession box, debating and cross-examination. Once you say something, you can’t really retract it. It’s too late. It’s a very existential moment.

I’m kind of hooked to the game of art and literature; my heroes are artists and writers.

I always wanted to write, but I always figured it’d be no good unless somehow the hand just took the pen and started moving without me really having anything to do with it. Like automatic writing. But it just never happened.

I wrote a few poems, of course. I think around the fifth or sixth grade I wrote a poem called The Pony Express. That was the first I can remember. It was one of those ballad-type poems. I never could get it together though.

Horse Latitudes I wrote when I was in high school. I kept a lot of notebooks through high school and college, and then when I left school, for some dumb reason - maybe it was wise - I threw them all away... I wrote in those books night after night. But maybe if I’d never thrown them away, I’d never have written anything original - because they were mainly accumulations of things that I’d read or heard, like quotes from books. I think if I'd never gotten rid of them, I’d never be free.

Listen, real poetry doesn’t say anything; it just ticks off the possibilities. Opens all doors. You can walk through any one that suits you.

...and that's why poetry appeals to me so much - because it’s so eternal. As long as there are people, they can remember words and combinations of words. Nothing else can survive a holocaust but poetry and songs. No one can remember an entire novel. No one can describe a film, a piece of sculpture, a painting, but so long as there are human beings, songs and poetry can continue.

If my poetry aims to achieve anything, it’s to deliver people from the limited ways in which they see and feel.

Jim Morrison
Los Angles, 1969-71

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Awto-intervista

Nemmen li l-intervista hija l-forma l-ġdida ta’ l-arti. Naħseb li l-awto-intervista hija l-essenza tal-kreattività – tistaqsi mistoqsijiet lilek innifsek u tipprova ssibilhom tweġiba. Il-kittieb sempliċement iwieġeb sensiela ta’ mistoqsijiet li qatt ma jkunu saru.

Din hija simili għal meta twieġeb xi mistoqsijiet mill-peduna tax-xhieda. Hija zona stramba fejn tittanta tiċċara xi ħaġa li ġrat fl-imgħoddi u tipprova tiftakar, bis-sedqa kollha, dak li kont qed tipprova tagħmel. Huwa eżerċizzju mentali kruċjali. Spiss l-intervista tagħtik il-possibilità li tinterroga lil moħħok, u din hija, fil-fehma tiegħi, id-definizzjoni ta’ l-arti. L-intervista tagħtik ukoll il-possibilità li tneħħi dak il-materjal żejjed kollu... għandek tipprova tkun espliċitu, preċiż, iżżomm mal-punt… m’hemmx nejk. Il-forma ta’ l-intervista għandha l-anteċedenti tagħha fil-konfessjonarju, fid-dibattitu u fil-kontroeżami. Ladarba tgħid xi ħaġa, ma tistax tirtiraha. Ikun tard wisq. Huwa mument tabilħaqq eżistenzjali.

B’xi mod jew ieħor, jiena ffissat fil-logħba ta’ l-arti u l-letteratura; l-eroj tiegħi huma l-artisti u l-kittieba.

Minn dejjem ridt nikteb, iżda dejjem dehrli li dan ikun għalxejn kemmildarba l-id, b’xi mod jew ieħor, ma taqbadx il-pinna u tibda tiċċaqlaq bla ma tassew ikolli x’naqsam magħha - bħall-kitba awtomatika. Iżda din qatt ma ġrat.

Kont ktibt xi erba’ poeżiji, dażgur. Jidhirli li meta kont fil-ħames jew fis-sitt klassi ktibt poeżija jismiha The Pony Express. Dik hija l-ewwel waħda li nista’ niftakar. Kienet waħda minn dawk bi stil ta’ ballata. Iżda qatt ma rnexxieli ngħaqqadha sewwa.

Horse Latitudes kont ktibtha meta kont l-iskola superjuri. Fi żmien l-iskola superjuri u l-kulleġġ kont żammejt bosta pitazzi, u meta ħriġt mill-iskola - għal raġuni stupida, jew forsi għaqlija – armejthom kollha ’l hemm… Dawk il-pitazzi kont inkitteb fihom lejl u nhar. Iżda forsi kieku qatt ma rmejthom, ma kont qatt nikteb xi ħaġa oriġinali, għax fil-biċċa l-kbira tagħhom dawk kienu ġmigħat ta’ ħwejjeġ li kont qrajt jew smajt, bħal kwotazzjonijiet minn kotba. Li kieku bqajt ma ħlistx minnhom, naħseb li qatt ma kont inkun ħieles.

Ħaġa ngħidlek: il-poeżija m’għandha għalfejn tgħid xejn; għandha sempliċement tirrevela l-possibilitajiet. Tiftaħ il-bibien kollha. F’idejk biex tgħaddi minn kwalunkwe wieħed li jkun jgħodd għalik.

…U huwa għalhekk li l-poeżija tappella għalija daqshekk – għax hija daqstant eterna. Sakemm se jibqa’ jkun hawn in-nies, huma jistgħu jiftakru l-kliem u l-kumbinazzjonijiet tagħhom. Xejn ma jista’ jissupera olakawstu ħlief il-poeżiji u l-kanzunetti. Ħadd ma jista’ jiftakar rumanz sħiħ. Ħadd ma jista’ jiddeskrivi film, biċċa skultura jew pittura, iżda sakemm jibqgħu jeżistu l-essri umani, il-kanzunetta u l-poeżija jistgħu jkomplu.

Jekk il-poeżija tiegħi għandha xi għan, huwa proprju li teħles lin-nies mill-modi limitati li bihom jaraw u jħossu.

Jim Morrison
Los Angeles, 1969-70





What are you doing here?
What do you want?
Is it music?
We can play music.
But you want more.
You want something & someone new.
Am I right?
Of course I am.
I know what you want.
You want ecstasy
Desire & dreams.
Things not exactly what they seem.
I lead you this way, he pulls that way.
I'm not singing to an imaginary girl.
I'm talking to you, my self.
Let's recreate the world.
The palace of conception is burning.

Look. See it burn.
Bask in the warm hot coals.

You're too young to be old
You don't need to be told
You want to see things as they are.
You know exactly what I do
Everything

* * * * * * * * * *

X’qed tagħmel hawn?
Xi trid?
Jaqaw il-mużga?
Nistgħu ndoqquha l-mużga.
Iżd’int trid iktar.
Trid xi ħaġa iżjed u xi ħaġa ġdida.
Hux sewwa qed ngħid?
Dażgur li jien.
Naf xi trid.
Inti trid l-estasi
Ix-xewqa u l-ħolm.
Ħwejjeġ li m’humiex sewsew kif jidhru.
Jien immexxik ’l hawn, huwa jiġbdek ’l hemm.
M’iniex inkanta lil xbejba mistħajla.
Qed nitħaddet miegħek, miegħi nnifsi.
Ejja nerġgħu noħolquha lid-dinja.
l-palazz tal-konċepiment qiegħed jaqbad.

Ħares. Arah jaqbad.
Jitbaskat fil-faħam abjad jikwi.

Int għadek żgħir wisq biex tkun xiħ
M’għandekx bżonn tagħlimiet.
Inti trid tara l-ħwejjeġ kif inhuma.
Taf sewwasew x’nagħmel jien
Kollox

Mużika: An American Prayer / Hour for Magic / Freedom Exists / A Feast of Friends - Jim Morrison & The Doors