David Ward: The Inaugural Poem

David Ward

The Inaugural has come and gone without leaving much of a trace although there is a lingering 'controversy' - the inverted commas are because the kerfuffle is being kept alive by the media and some opportunistic politicians - over whether Beyoncé lip-synched the National Anthem. Since lip-synching is now a commonplace at live events (Yo Yo Ma's cello concerto was entirely pre-recorded for the 2009 Inaugural) one wonders what the point of the fuss is. Anyway, her earrings were fabulous.

What of the inaugural poem by Richard Blanco? Called 'One Today' it was well received by the public, commentators, and people I know. Rhetorically and as a performance piece it did what the occasion required: it was uplifting, unifying, and embracing. It used a series of homely descriptors (school buses, trucks, stalks of corn) to drive home the notion that we're all in this together. It was clearly structured and pitched in the tradition of Whitman’s and Sandburg’s populism, although both were a good deal more flinty and realistic about America than Mr Blanco. People reported that they cried while listening to it. This emotional welling up demonstrates one of the advantages of being the inaugural poet: it doesn't much matter what you write provided you tap into the wellsprings of goodwill evoked by the moment. The poet is there to confirm people's good intentions and well-meaning expectations. This Mr Blanco did to a fault.