Poetry Essays and Research Papers Page 2

The art of rhythmical composition

Poetry is one of the most beautiful and complex forms of writing. Some poets write more complex poems than others. T. S. Eliot’s poetry connects to the audience through his use of literary devices, imagery, theme, and complex writing. “Poetry is the art of rhythmical composition, written or spoken, for exciting pleasure by beautiful, imaginative, orelevated thoughts” (Dictionary.com). To put it together poetry is a way of expressing your feelings and emotions through certain word choice and structure. There are multiple types of poetry but one poetry style that we are all to familiar about is lyrical poetry, this is “a verse or poem that is, or supposedly is, susceptible of being sung to the accompaniment of a musical instrument” (Britannica). This type of poetry can be commonly related to songs, songs are poems that are read in a different way and incorporate musical instruments.  Poetry differs from other forms of literature because there is no set form of rules in order to write it. When writing novels or short stories there is rules about how sentences must be shaped. In poetry lines can be cut, and sentences can span the length of more than two lines, chopped up to give more feeling. Novels can tell a story, but poetry can open emotions and cause readers to feel what the author is saying.

To respond to poetry, the text suggests that first, the poem should be read, or just listened to, without thinking in too deeply about it. Second, looks as to where to find something that is expected, based on foreshadowing, or it could take an unexpected twist and frustrate expectations. Third, read the syntax literally. This means to read through verbally and hear how the words are arranged so the poem can be heard the way the author intended. During this the words should be changed into sentences, without worrying about the stanzas. Afterwards, translating the poem into modern terms will help the poem be better understood. Fourth, reference works should be consulted, this can be done by looking up any places, people, or myths that may be included in the poem that is hard to understand. Fifth, once the literal meaning of each sentence is understood, ask about who, when, and what happens. When the time and setting can be understood, the overall meaning of the poem can be interpreted better. After finding out the who, when, and where, ask questions that dig deeper into this such as, “Why does it matter?”, or “What does it all mean?”. Next look at the form of the poem, how the words are arranged can have a big effect on how the author had intended them to be read. Look at rhyme and how the poem flows, as this could also impact the way the author wanted the poem to be heard. Afterward, consider how the poem uses and moves off of poetic conventions. Specific subgenres of poetry have been used historically for different outcomes, such as a sonnet, with fourteen lines, or an elegy where the poem will result in a death somewhere. Lastly, argue. Argument and discussion with others can bring light to things you have never thought of and can reveal the true meaning of the poem from other people’s points of view.

To write about poetry you need a willingness to listen carefully to the poem, not just retain the information, the genuine questions can be constructed asking about how it works, what it means, and how it fulfills and challenges expectations about life, as well as poetry. Poetry can be written about in almost any way as long as it is understood, and the writer of the paper has a genuine interest on how to break down the poem and understand it as close as possible to the way the author intended.

An example of the diversity of poetry

Poetry can be very similar but very different at the same time. There is poetry about inner peace and inner comfort and there is power about the things we do not like in life. This is exactly what we can see in Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman’s poetry. In Emily Dickinson’s poem, “324” we realize that she doesn’t need to go to church because her church is always by her side. On the other hand we have Whitman’s poem “When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer” we learn about his impatience and his attitude toward hearing a lecture from a astronomer. As many things are different there are very similar things about these two poems. Even though they talk about two very different topics we can see that both these authors choose nature over church or classes. We can see that Dickinson will always choose nature over Church because she compares the choir to the singing bird outside of her window. On the other hand Whitman compares his preference in being outside than being inside listening to a lecture.

Another example of this can be that they both use imagery. They both leave the readers with imagines in their heads. They use words that allow the reader to imagine and create what the the author is saying. We also see that they have very romantic attitudes towards nature. Nature is so beautiful and that it is the best thing in the world. In both of these works of literature we can see their similarities and we can note that their attitudes are very similar.

Conclusion

Despite having many similarities they also have many differences. Although these difference aren’t so much in the emotions they are in the way the authors write. They both have very different styles. For example, we can see that in Emily Dickinson “324” she uses a concise meter. A meter is when they have a fluent and pattern of writing. On the other hand when we read Whitman’s poem we see that there is not a very organized structure. He has short sentences and long sentence. We also see that in Emily Dickinson’s poem there is a lot of rhymes and we don’t see a lot of the that in Whitman poem. Lastly, another big difference is that Whitman expresses himself in a more conversational style while Dickinson expresses herself in a more fluent musical way.

Despite these many difference we can see that individual beauty of the author and the techniques of the poems. There are many parts that make the poems original and special and there are many parts that make the poems similar and special. Both these are great because they create great memories and images for the readers and they can connect to the authors. Like Rick Riordan said, “Beauty is about finding the right fit, the most natural fit. To be perfect avoid trying to be something you’re not.” This is so important about originality in a poem.