Getting Played

Abstract

This essay explores a concept called the taskscape, employed in anthropology and archaeology, and suggests a model for a poetry taskscape. The taskscape is a perspective on human social systems as components of larger, physical systems that are dynamic rather than fixed. Constituents of taskscapes, both human and nonhuman, are shaped by the taskscape and contribute to shaping the taskscape. The general taskscape is briefly reviewed, a model for a specific poetry taskscape is proposed, and implications for future work are made clear. The tasks of performing a poem and hearing a poem are given particular focus.