17 pages • 34-minute read
American Sonnet for My Past and Future Assassin [“Probably twilight ...”]
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Further Reading & Resources
Related Poems
“American Sonnet: 91“ by Wanda Coleman (2001)
Terrance Hayes bases his American sonnet form on Coleman’s. While this poem resembles Hayes’s American sonnets in its internal rhyme, alliterative patterns, and sprung rhythms, the two poets differ in voice and pacing, though Coleman's sonnet also blends the personal and public.
“American Sonnet for Wanda C.“ by Terrance Hayes (2015)
Before American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin, Hayes wrote this American sonnet for Wanda Coleman, the form’s originator. More specific and narrative than his sonnets for the Assassin, this tribute follows more closely Coleman’s model of dynamic rhythm and internal rhyme.
“The Golden Shovel" by Terrance Hayes (2010)
Hayes invented the “golden shovel” form in this tribute to Gwendolyn Brooks. The form uses the words of the source poem (in this case, Brooks’ “We Real Cool”) as end words for each line of the new poem.
Further Literary Resources
“The Politics and Play of Terrance Hayes“ by Dan Chiasson (2018)
Chiasson examines Hayes’s form, technique, and subject within the context of current American politics and culture.
“The Wicked Candor of Wanda Coleman“ by Terrance Hayes (2020)
Hayes’s essay on Wanda Coleman, whose influence figures prominently in American Sonnets for My Past and Future Executioner, illuminates his own work as well.
“The Right Poetry Collection for Right Now: ‘American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin’“ by Walton Muyumba (2018)
Muyumba argues that American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin is a useful lens for examining American conflict under one of the most divisive presidencies in American history.
“American Sonnets: PolyVocality and Code Switching With Wanda Coleman and Terrance Hayes" by Mike Sonksen
This article explores the way both Terrance Hayes and Wanda Coleman expand the use of the sonnet form to encompass contemporary culture, focusing on the form as a way to bring Black cultural influence into traditional systems.
Listen to Poem
The title has an embedded link to the audio recording; the poet’s emphases and pauses help illuminate specific parts of the poem.
Terrance Hayes Reads “American Sonnet for My Past and Future Assassin”
In this recording, Hayes reads two other poems from the volume. The recording also includes useful commentary from editors of Poetry.
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