Mode of Program Participation
Academic Scholarship
Participation Type
Paper
Presentation #1 Title
Pushing the Limits of Appalachian Art: Extreme Affrilachia and the Xtreme Affrilachian Poets
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
The Affrilachian Poets fit ASA’s definition of “Extreme Appalachia” on the conference website in most of the ways defined for this upcoming conference, and especially in their “impassioned commitments to the the region.” They also fit certain realms of dictionary definitions of extreme. One thing for sure, the word Affrilachia and the Affrilachian Poets have had their limits pushed, and in turn have pushed back; pushing limits being a certain view of extreme. As a result of such tension, the limits have been pushed of Appalachia and Appalachian literature. This presentation proposes to guide an audience through the ways in which the Affrilachian Poets are an extreme group of Appalachians with “impassioned commitments...to...Appalachian communities.” I will show how these limits pushed Frank X Walker to create the word Affrilachia when he read his dictionary’s definition of Appalachian as “white natives or residents of the Appalachian mountains.” I will then show how the Affrilachian Poets pushed back, and in the process pushed the limits of the very notion of a white Appalachia perpetuated through stereotypes created by “exploitative pop culture,” offering contemporary and historic examples. Much of the Affrilachian Poets' push-back, of course, comes through the group's “countering power of the region’s visual, performance, and literary arts to nurture, provoke, and inspire.” As well as demonstrating the extreme nature of the group’s poetry, I will highlight certain members’ efforts to promote "racial, social, economic, and environmental justice" through their visual and performance art.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Forrest Gray Yerman is a native of Matney, North Carolina. He holds a BA in Creative Writing, and an MA in Appalachian Studies, both from Appalachian State University.
Pushing the Limits of Appalachian Art: Extreme Affrilachia and the Xtreme Affrilachian Poets
The Affrilachian Poets fit ASA’s definition of “Extreme Appalachia” on the conference website in most of the ways defined for this upcoming conference, and especially in their “impassioned commitments to the the region.” They also fit certain realms of dictionary definitions of extreme. One thing for sure, the word Affrilachia and the Affrilachian Poets have had their limits pushed, and in turn have pushed back; pushing limits being a certain view of extreme. As a result of such tension, the limits have been pushed of Appalachia and Appalachian literature. This presentation proposes to guide an audience through the ways in which the Affrilachian Poets are an extreme group of Appalachians with “impassioned commitments...to...Appalachian communities.” I will show how these limits pushed Frank X Walker to create the word Affrilachia when he read his dictionary’s definition of Appalachian as “white natives or residents of the Appalachian mountains.” I will then show how the Affrilachian Poets pushed back, and in the process pushed the limits of the very notion of a white Appalachia perpetuated through stereotypes created by “exploitative pop culture,” offering contemporary and historic examples. Much of the Affrilachian Poets' push-back, of course, comes through the group's “countering power of the region’s visual, performance, and literary arts to nurture, provoke, and inspire.” As well as demonstrating the extreme nature of the group’s poetry, I will highlight certain members’ efforts to promote "racial, social, economic, and environmental justice" through their visual and performance art.
