dye-a-log.

What is poetry?

'I don't like poems! They either sound vague, with that abstract thought thingy OR lame, as they force the story to stick to a silly rhyming scheme. *Back, rack, slack, black* Huh! Anytime I hear someone say how much they love poetry, I think they are either pretentious or childish.'

- 'That's an intense opinion. I see where you come from, but there is a major fault in your premise: you think that a poem should be either be abstract or lyrical. Neither are necessary, nor definitive of what we consider as poetry. 

A poem is a means to say as many things (immediately apparent or not) in as few words as possible. Consider it like a very refined form of story telling. Poems may be parables, or a diagnosis of thoughts and experiences, or a way of seeing invisible connections, or a set of instructions, or a means to lament, love, applaud, abhor, implore, incite, or an evocative yet abruptly ending description... the choice is endless. And while we may not be able to define and control the structure or content of a poem, we can identify one characteristic purpose that sets poetry apart from everything else: A poem is meant to evoke. All else is optional.'

'But, I get evoked by music. Surely, music or songs are not poems?'

- 'True, most of us would not consider them to be poems. But, have you considered poetry to be a type of music? I believe, poetry is the music of language. Just as all noise is not music, all communication is not poetry. It takes skill, a beautiful understanding of sounds and silences, and an inspiration to draw music. The same applies to poetry, although one would need an understanding of words and connotations. 

Some music may make people chime, but great music evokes.
Some poetry may make people rhyme, but great poetry evokes.'

'Yeah, okay... cool story. But, it doesn't change my view so much. Poetry is far too ambiguous for my liking. Who am I to decide what the poet wanted to convey? What if she didn't want to talk about anything other than what is offered by the face value of words. Like, the sky is fucking blue, man. No more, no less! Can you stop mincing her words or making a big deal about it?'    

- 'Okay. I agree, it is possible that she thought that the sky is blue and nothing more than that. But, maybe, just maybe, the imagery presented by that sentence evokes something in you (quite coincidentally, of course - none of it intentional). Some childhood memory, perhaps? It reminds you of seeing a single floating cloud shaped like a whale in a dark blue sky; It reminds of clear skies after a huge storm, as if someone cleared the canvas in one giant wipe of blue paint; It reminds you of your weariness from blue skies and how you waited dearly for the sight of some water bearing clouds. I dont know what it evokes! Neither does the poet, in fact. She only guides your thoughts, and sometimes reveals a connection she thinks you ought to know about. The actual perception of meaning from those words is yours, and she is okay with it. If it doesn't evoke a feeling in you, you are right to disregard it as a poem. The bottom-line, however, is that decoding poetry is as much of poetry as the poem itself. Charming, isn't it?'