By BILLY MORAN

STAFF WRITER

As a senior English Major, I have seen my fair share of guest writers in the Sykes formal lounge.  Quite often I have found that these writers are interesting, exciting and inspiring.  The most recent visit was no exception.  On October 28th, this past Tuesday, we were fortunate enough to have the poet Samantha Thornhill grace us with her presence.  Before she even began to read her poetry, (I could tell that she was a personality within herself.)  She spoke with a loud clear voice that was both endearing and intimidating.  Once she began to read her work it was clear that Thornhill’s outgoing persona was reflected in how she read and the language she used. 

It is fairly common, when experiencing a visiting writer, to learn that the writer is not fully expressed until the actual physical reading of his or her work.  For Thornhill, this was delightfully not the case. 

Between her readings, the poet would tell her audience bits and pieces about her life and how such poems came to be. In certain cases, she even used poems from other artists to express herself in ways that were specifically pertinent to her. 

One such example she gave was when she was sitting on a subway with a good friend of hers.  They had gotten into a habit of expressive art where her friend would sing a song and Samantha would follow it up with a piece of poetry. In this particular case, there was a group of obnoxious boys making fun of them in the train car. Thornhill, after debating whether or not to follow up with a poem, decided to direct her attention towards the boys.  While the name of the poem escapes me now it is about the difficulties of being a woman.  She went on to tell the audience that not only did it catch them completely by surprise with its crude language, but it shut those boys right up.  When she recited the poem to the audience, it came as no surprise to me that it had such an impact. 

Perhaps the most outstanding quality of her craft was her delivery of each poem, whether it was her own or someone else’s. She had each one completely memorized and spoke with movement and gesture.  Her voice was strong throughout, and inflections were always made at the most necessary points. Thornhill’s style of performance poetry created an atmosphere in which the audience could connect and remain fully engaged throughout. 

Overall I would have to say that she was one of the best visiting writers I have ever had the chance to experience and, we would be privileged to have her return.