Technology, Polypoetry and the Aura of Poly-performance

Abstract

Using extracts from poets and critics alike, the author lets them speak directly, through quotation and poetic offering, demonstrating the pros and cons of aurality in poetic performance. The central question is: How does technology influence poetry and performance? A secondary question concerns the locus of creativity — is it in the poem itself or the technological investigation. Diverse international artists are presented; Henri Chopin, Stelarc, Robert Wilson, Orlan and others, while the critical writings of Walter Benjamin, Jean Baudrillard and Paul Virilio provide a counterpoint.