Tuesday, April 8, 2008
The month of April showers the world with not only rain but also poetry.
That’s right. It’s National Poetry Month.
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I am sick of the angry, the-world-sucks poetry, and I cannot bring myself to write an ode to the clouds.
Now, many readers may be rolling their eyes and groaning, thinking of the usual poetic stereotypes.
We have our:
1. Angsty, depressed intellectuals donned in black who are burdened with the woes of the world, their souls dripping truth upon the page.
2. Old-school Romantics who, like hippies, enjoy watching the grass grow and cannot say anything without describing it to the last miraculous molecule.
3. Old epic poets who describe battles and glory in such a vague way that we are immediately induced into a sonorous slumber.
Poetry is sometimes misunderstood as boring or too complicated. Sure, some poetry is like that, but we should not be so quick to condemn all poetry books to only be useful doorstops.
If we judged every book by the literature we are required to read in class, many of us would never pick up a book again in fear of finding something as terrifying as “Heart of Darkness.”
Poetry attempts to describe a moment in time, and it paints a picture with words.
Poetry does not require a deep, dark hidden meaning. Poetry just is. It is a form of expression, a way of communicating the author’s thoughts.
Think of poets like Shel Silverstein, Dr. Suess or Ogden Nash. They are talented writers who express their thoughts and ideas in poetry.
However, their poetry is often not what we think of when thinking of traditional poetry. But, regardless of the form and subject matter, their work is still poetry.
When we look at poetry with this mindset, it is not as daunting. In fact, we might find poetry rather fun.
I am sick of the angry, the-world-sucks poetry, and I cannot bring myself to write an ode to the clouds (They’re clouds. They float. End of story).
Instead, I wrote a poem about how I despise how much teachers pick literature apart.
This poem was very popular with my classmates in high school.
Why? Because it is genuine.
If authors write about personal subject matter in a style that is true to themselves, then poetry can be beautiful and easily accessible for all people.
Hartz is a Stilwell junior in creative writing.
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Comments
Hartz: Poetry allows its authors to be angsty or old-school
You assume because I’m female I’m supposed to rock pretty But I refuse to sit lip locked in on serostitute committees,
I got a thing or two to do if we’re going to change the world with truth So I’ll start off by introducing my posh to the group, Say I’m a straight laced pretty face from KC, allow me, to admit it I kick it in the bounty of Johnson county, Where I come from I ain’t exactly free, or afraid But does that mean I shouldn’t have anything to say?
Don’t you see, who I am and who I’m trying to be, is truly me…
As for what you and I are trying to accomplish, Our differences begin in the defying of languages I hear poetry is reserved for whiter American anguish? rap for the thugs, slang for drugs, hip hop for Africana strangers, I see what began as MCing turned only brothers mainstreaming well here we be ready to mix in color of a sister beat, I display hip tendencies, all the way hippie beneath, But today I’d prefer to hop over to your side of the street where together we could rock to one universal beat…
My roots grown between gangster rap and Johnson county, shoot I’ve already got a bad rep but if you allow me to throw something down, from my subculture to yours, we’ll take it all around town, openin’ doors, evening the score, easin’ up war, tongues rapping like swords, with words our personal peace corps, where I ask you to come explore not above me or inside me, worse below thee, but beside a she, with words, fighting for your fellow woe-men, let’s pretend just for a second,
you can stand up to the man, represent your own plan, close your eyes, next to my kin we’re no different inside you know, intrinsic appearances so often hide truth, behold, if you just listen to her tongue spit this hoe’s debut will unfold
I just told you, who I am and who I’m trying to be, is just more we…
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