Obedient Laughter

Poetry. Film. OBEDIENT LAUGHTER is the second book of Ray DiPalma's poetry published by Seismicity Editions, following the extraordinary 2009 volume, THE ANCIENT USE OF STONE, of which Don Share wrote, "His mind is a distillery, an alembic, and that's why his quotidian pluckings and gatherings are so musical—and so fascinating." Like much of DiPalma's mature work, the thrust of his compositions in OBEDIENT LAUGHTER is both ludic and antic, taking its place in the carnivalesque tradition that comes to us from poets of antiquity, down through the Goliard Poets, Rabelais, Goldoni and Beckett, among others. In Beckett's Endgame we are reminded that "Nothing is funnier than unhappiness," and so DiPalma's latest collection takes a step beyond the mordant conclusion of Beckett's observation, while questioning the true nature of obedience. OBEDIENT LAUGHTER is part of Otis Books | Seismicity Editions' Chroma Series, featuring poetry and prose by Guy Bennett, Dennis Phillips, Paul Vangelisti and Sarah Shun-lien Bynum.