From the website of Richard P. Gabriel —
" As part of my studies, I came up with a 'theory of poetry'
based loosely on Christopher Alexander’s 'Nature of Order.' "
[The Alexander link is mine, not Gabriel’s.]
A phrase from this journal a year ago today — "poetic order" —
links to the theory of Gabriel —
From Gabriel's "The Nature of Poetic Order" —
Positive Space
• Positive space is the characteristic of a center
that moves outward from itself, seemingly oozing life
rather than collapsing on itself
• An image that resonates is showing positive space
• A word that has many connotations that fit with the
other centers in the poem is showing positive space
• It is an expansion outward rather than a contraction
inward, and it shows that the poem is unfolding
in front of us and not dying
Related material —
From a post of April 26, 2017 —