Looking for quote about poetry and prose in the obscenity context

[Volokh, Eugene]

        I remember once hearing a great story about an obscenity prosecution
based on a poem -- Allen Ginsberg's "Howl," if I recall correctly.  The
expert witness on the stand, a literature professor, was explaining the
work's literary value, and the prosecutor, impatient with the witness's
explanations, said something like "Look, professor, can you just explain in
normal words what the poem means?"  To that, the professor replied something
like "Poetry is that which cannot be explained in normal words."

        I highly doubt that virtually any of the words that I've given here
actually appear in the story -- but I think I've gotten the gist, or at
least the gist of what I heard.  Does this ring any bells?  Please reply
off-list, to volokh at law.ucla.edu .  Thanks,

        Eugene
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