Chad Hall
In his first collection of poetry, “Erectile Dysfunction,” Bay Area artist Chad Hall reflects on issues surrounding love, sex, and what it means to be a man. We talked with him to learn how he turned life’s complexities into poetic prose.
What Was the Inspiration for Erectile Dysfunction?
To some degree, poetry has always been a bit of therapy for me. The immediacy of the medium seems to make my jumbled internal world more tangible. I’ve always believed it better to wrestle your demons than to let them poke you from under the bed. So this book was a way for me work through some issues that I’ve been having regarding intimacy.
In a way it is also a response to the complexities of the modern male identity; learning to show our sensitivities & vulnerabilities while having to also deal with the misogyny passed on to us from previous generations and the fear of complete emasculation.
How did you come up with the name? Clearly, there’s a very literal definition, But there seems to be meaning beyond that. The original idea started out as a bit of a joke. I don’t know exactly where it started but I do remember telling my friend, Giovanni, that I was gonna write a bunch of limp dick poems. Then at some point, I began to think about Erectile Dysfunction as a metaphor.
For a man, erectile dysfunction is the ultimate vulnerability, yet it is also quite common. So to really tackle the concept of what it means to be a man, I thought it might be nice to start with my manhood on the chopping block. Writing, at times, can be a lot like being an escape artist. I set myself up for uncomfortable truths that seem impossible to transcend & hope that I can squeeze out some truth.
What was the most challenging PART of writing the book? The most rewarding? I think being this honest and willing to look ugly and weak was hard at first. Part of the legacy that modern men have inherited is the desire to look strong and powerful; the desire for everyone to think we all have big cocks and we are always amazing in bed. So it was difficult to let go of wanting to do that. (Whiskey helped.) In turn that is what made it also the most rewarding. As I machismo fictions cascading off of my back.
