Dr. Lillian-Yvonne Bertram, associate professor and director of the MFA Creative Writing program at the University of Maryland, visited Dye Lecture Hall April 3 to read some of their recent and selected works. Bertram’s expertise and talent is widely recognized, as they previously held positions at institutions such as the University of Massachusetts Boston, Williams College, and Ithaca College. Bertram is the author of a myriad of poetry collections, prose, and essays. Their work has earned them a plethora of honors — most notably a 2017 Harvard University Woodberry Poetry Room Creative Grant, a 2014 National Endowment for the Arts Poetry Fellowship, a finalist nomination for the 2013 Hurston/ Wright Legacy Award, a Vermont Studio Center Fellowship, and fellowships to the Bread Loaf Writers Conference and Cave Canem.
The event drew a large crowd, largely consisting of English majors. Bertram read a selection of poems, mainly from their recent collection, Negative Money. Additionally, they included works from a new project — an anagram and sestina entitled “Lineage.” Negative Money was introduced as a collection of poems exploring themes of gender, race, technology, and capitalism. “Lineage,” on the other hand, discussed elements of infertility and family, highlighted through its individual structural concept.
Bertram’s style of writing felt incredibly expansive while still being raw and real. Their writing was accessible and relatable, even for someone like myself who lacks a background in poetry. College first-year Peri Mutlu attended the event and found it to be a great
exploration of the form. “Readings in general are great because poetry, when it was first happening, was all verbal,” Mutlu said. “I think it is interesting to return to the roots of that and see how readings can change the meanings of things.”
Bertram’s recitation was crucial. As a listener, I felt as though I was able to understand the intricacies of their perspective that I may not have been able to grasp from reading it on my own.
One aspect of the event that particularly spoke to me was Bertram’s use of artificial intelligence. Negative Money includes multiple poems that interact with an older form of ChatGPT, much more rigid and less developed than it is now. As current AI has progressed extensively since then, hearing earlier forms of AI’s rigid and inherently “rough around the edges” nature was particularly interesting. I found that it enhanced the emotional depth and resonance of their poetry.
Bertram focused on newer works during the second half of the reading, including more structured poetry that offered a change of pace than what was previously read and a different nuance for the audience to listen for. “Lineage” delves into detailed themes of infertility and family. While I was somewhat unfamiliar with the collection’s style, I found that the structure compelled me to pay closer attention to not only the flow of the words but the content as well.
Bertram’s reading provided an opportunity for students to interact with poetry that is spoken aloud. Moving, emotional and incredibly expansive, their work covered a breadth of topics. I left the lecture hall having interacted with poetry in a way that I otherwise would not have.
