A Reality that is Not

As the title reveals, Edith Covensky's world exists on or in the ever-shifting borders between reality and non-reality. It affirms the value of both, even while recognizing that the mind is tugging toward reality and the imagination is resisting it. The clarity with which Covensky presents this struggle is unmatched in contemporary poetry. Once we understand the terms of Agon, namely the conflict between the primary forces of reality pitted against fiction, this poetry practically speaks for itself. Consider the following:

My words quiver

Resembling the night's lantern

And the web of silent stars

Concealing my poem

Explicit

Naked spread out on the page

Like a missive

Like a deceit

Playing among thousands of words

(First stanza of A Reality that is Not)