Is Poetry Dead

IS POETRY DEAD?

Yes, poetry is dead to some extent. Poetry in the classical sense is dead anyway, but there is still poetry in today’s society. We may not look at it in the same way we did years ago because it has changed. We as a society do not take the time to read as we once did, to understand and enjoy literary text. I agree with Wexler’s statements “we have become lazy and lack the knowledge, commitment, and patience to understand and enjoy poetry.” I myself do not understand poetry and do not want to take the time to read enough of it to understand it.

According to Wexler “It is difficult to imagine a world without movies, plays, novels and music, but a world without poems doesn't have to be imagined.” It is difficult to imagine such a thing but if we look closely we might find poetry in all of those places. Today’s society is a fast-paced one and the entertainers have adapted to this way of life. They make novels into short stories on film, leaving out critical parts in the novel, to appease our appetites for entertainment on a tight schedule.

“My interest waned,” writes Wexler. “On the surface, I suppose it was because I had other interests that demanded my time and attention: I got married, had children, pursued my career, bought a house. With apologies to Frost, I began to find more relevance in articles about interest rates than essays on the sprung rhythm of Hopkins.” With the computer age comes less time to sit and read for pure entertainment. There are video games, internet and such that replace the enjoyment of a good book. People do not sit and discuss a good book as they once did; we discuss the latest movie or play instead, because we feel that these things take up less of our time than reading. I myself only read when I need to and even then I usually skim through to get the highlights.

But as to the art of poetry being dead all together as Wexler’s states I disagree. We can find poetry everywhere if we look. Look at some of the modern music of today’s society it is there form of poetry. According to Kay Day, “I have a theory about that, one that rests on the fact that poetry has splintered into a number of different factions. There is poetry for the page, a type of poetry that appeals to those who enjoy scholarship and intellectual challenges. Then there’s slam poetry, popular among youth, that relies on thumping rhythm and aggressive rhyme. Formal poets espouse rhythm and meter based on traditional forms such as the sonnet. Personal poetry, also known as journal poetry, serves up stockroom emotions in a variety of forms, and this poetry usually reflects the writer’s emotional state in a familiar way.” I agree with this statement the world has changed and evolved to view poetry in many different lights.

Some food for thought, in doing research I also found a couple