Caroline Bergvall

Caroline Bergvall Poems

Caroline Bergvall Biography

Caroline Bergvall (born 1962) is a poet of French-Norwegian nationalities who has lived in England since 1989. Bergvall has developed audio texts and collaborative performances with sound artists in Europe and North America; her critical work is largely concerned with emerging forms of writing, plurilingual poetry, and mixed media writing practices, also Performance Writing. She wrote FIG (Goan Atom 2), poetic and performance pieces (Salt Books, 2005). Installations with Ciaran Maher include Lidl Suga for TEXT Festival (2005) and Say: "Parsley" at Liverpool Biennial (2004).)

The Best Poem Of Caroline Bergvall

The Not Tale (Funeral)

The great labour of appearance
served the making of the pyre.
But how
nor how
How also
how they
shal nat be toold
shall not be told.
Nor how the gods
nor how the beestes and the birds
nor how the ground agast
Nor how the fire
first with straw
and then with drye
and then with grene
and then with gold
and then.
Now how a site is laid like this.
Nor what
nor how
nor what she spak, nor what was her desire
Nor what jewels
when the fire
Nor how some threw their
and some their
and their
and cups full of wine and milk
and blood
into the fyr
into the fire
Nor how three times
and three times with
and three times how
and how that
Nor how
nor how
nor how
nor who
I cannot tell
nor can I say
but shortly to the point
I turn
and give my tale an end.

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