Documentary Poetics
This guide spotlights key writers of documentary poetics—poets who build from real documents, testimony, news, and public record. Each entry says what the work does, gives a short fair-use quote, and offers a “try-it” idea for writers.
Muriel Rukeyser — The Book of the Dead (1938)
What it does: A landmark sequence on the Hawk’s Nest Tunnel silicosis disaster, weaving court testimony, interviews, travel notes, and historical texts into a people’s record. Try it: pair one line of public testimony with one line of map/route language from your neighborhood.
“What three things can never be done? / Forget. Keep silent. Stand alone.”
Source: Poetry Foundation excerpt from “The Book of the Dead.”
Charles Reznikoff — Testimony (1934–70)
What it does: Distills thousands of pages of U.S. court records into spare, lucid narratives—accidents, labor disputes, violence—letting the documents speak. Try it: locate one short public case summary and lineate it without commentary.
“He was not treated by a doctor… just put into the jail and left there to die.”
Source: Poetry Foundation, from Testimony: The United States (1885–1890).
C. D. Wright (with Deborah Luster) — One Big Self (2003)
What it does: Text–photo portrait of Louisiana’s prisons built from interviews, inscriptions, and field notes alongside documentary photographs. Try it: collect three brief first-person statements from public exhibits (museum labels, plaques), then arrange them as a choral stanza.
“I want to go home, Patricia whispered.”
Source: Poetry Foundation excerpt, “from One Big Self.”
C. D. Wright — One With Others (2010)
What it does: Reconstructs a 1969 civil-rights march and the life of “V.” through reportage, oral history, and lyric montage. Try it: braid one newspaper line, one interview fragment, and one weather log from the same day.
“People study the dingy chenille clouds for a sign.”
Source: Poets.org excerpt from One With Others.
Claudia Rankine — Citizen: An American Lyric (2014)
What it does: Hybrid documentary/lyric that catalogs everyday and media-visible racial aggressions—sports commentary, news, conversations—framed with images and citations. Try it: transcribe one overheard exchange and one headline; place them in sequence without explanation.
“When you are alone and too tired even to turn on any of your devices…”
Source: KCRW published excerpt from Citizen.
Solmaz Sharif — Look (2016)
What it does: Refunctions the U.S. Department of Defense lexicon—dropping official definitions into intimate scenes to show how bureaucratic language shapes life. Try it: lift one specialized definition (medical, legal, transit) and counterpoint it with two lines of lived detail.
“LOOK — In mine warfare, a period during which a mine circuit is receptive of an influence.”
Source: Selections from Look (PDF excerpt).
Layli Long Soldier — WHEREAS (2017)
What it does: Replies to the 2009 U.S. government “Apology to Native Peoples,” echoing and interrogating its legal “whereas” phrasing. Try it: take a public apology/statement; write a stanza that keeps its structure but insists on your community’s specifics.
“Whereas like a bird darting from an oncoming semi my mind races to the Apology’s assertion…”
Source: Poetry Foundation, “from WHEREAS.”
M. NourbeSe Philip — Zong! (2008)
What it does: Composes entirely from the 1783 legal decision Gregson v. Gilbert about the massacre aboard the slave ship Zong—language shattered to make law testify. Try it: extract 30–50 words from a single public document; allow fracture/white space to carry meaning.
“there is creed there is fate there is oh oh oracle”
Sources: Author’s excerpt and notes on method.
Mark Nowak — Coal Mountain Elementary (2009)
What it does: Collages Chinese mining-disaster reports, Sago Mine testimony, industry lesson plans, and documentary photos—an activist dossier in verse. Try it: juxtapose a corporate FAQ with one worker testimony; place each on its own page/stanza.
“Coal mining is a job for living people working in hell.”
Source: Publisher/educator excerpts.
Juliana Spahr — This Connection of Everyone with Lungs (2005)
What it does: News ticker meets love poem—global headlines braided with intimate address to show shared air and shared stakes. Try it: alternate one global headline with one bodily image for ten lines.
“There are these things: / cells, the movement of cells and the division of cells…”
Source: Book excerpt.
Philip Metres — Sand Opera (2015)
What it does: FOIA documents, interrogation transcripts, and redactions become arias about the War on Terror—voices layered and blacked-out on the page. Try it: print a public memo; blackout to leave only the verbs and body words.
“I was there for 67 days…”
Source: Review excerpt quoting documentary testimony.
How to Try Documentary Poetics This Week
- Pick one public document (agenda item, bus notice, park rule, ballot explainer). Lift 20–40 words that carry dates/places/numbers.
- Arrange without commentary. Let juxtaposition and line breaks do the meaning-making.
- Credit your sources in a one-line note at the end.
