WHY
POETRY MATTERS
It would be quite easy for you to see poetry as an
art form to be irrelevant. Many see art
as excessive, unnecessary, and a waste of time, money and resources especially
when its compared to the social ills, deprivation and injustices taking place around
the world. Many question whether poetry really add meaning and beauty to life
or is it us who add meaning and beauty to poetry. Thus many dismiss its
significance and miss the point of this art form. Poetry exposes and helps us resolve issues of social
injustice, it helps humanize and realize the emotions, grievances and fears of
those who lack place or opportunity to voice concerns. Poetry is the human
voice that moves us, shake us, shock or inspire us to action. If we look back
in history, we’ll see that art and especially poetry has always been deeply
rooted in activism or social change
The past centuries are prevalent with examples of
poets finding voice in circumstances that by all rights should have silenced
them. Poetry does that, giving you the power to speak, digging through your
silent screams, gathering self and finding form even when it seems impossible
to do so. It gives you that voice to speak when you feel like you’ve lost your
voice and makes the world listen. It shows you things that would normally go unnoticed,
exposing the beauty hidden behind the dark and ugly in the world. Poetry says
to you, you matter; you’re important even if no one else think so. It crawls
into your soul and brings out your deepest emotion, that which you thought it
was impossible to find words for.
Poetry says to you in the richest of language,
something is wrong let’s change it for the
better. The world teaches us to hide our thought, our emotions, build our
protective armour and hideaway our feelings, hide our selves, .but poetry allows
you to strip through all of that and be incredibly vulnerable and human. And it’s
not a vulnerability that makes you soft or weak but one that gives you real strength. That is why poetry is necessary, irreplaceable and of
inherent value. It teaches us to notice things; it beautifies our language and enriches
our communication. Rather than say “I became fearful,” poetry says “fear took
hold of me or I crawled back into the safety of my skin”. It finds a way to place
value, on the dignity, specificity and beauty of our individual lives.
Also,
writing poetry can be a form of therapy as it gives you the ability to express yourself and process your feelings through the written word. Paul Engle said “Poetry is ordinary language raised
to the Ninth power". Poetry is boned with ideas, nerved and blooded with emotions;
all held together by the delicate, tough skin of words.” It makes the ordinary
extraordinary, and brings newness to common mundane things. Through the power of
its rich artistic language; poetry is able to transcend barriers of creed,
class or race and make a difference, because Poetry speaks for all. Poetry
reminds us what it is to be human it gives breath and life to the longing,
thoughts and ideas that had died inside us and cause us to dream again. It makes us see more clearly, feel more deeply, live more fully. Poetry fulfills
in us not just the need to speak but that human need to sing, this is the power of
poetry, this is why poetry matters.
Do Poetry matter to you??
HOPE THIS VIDEO SPEAKS TO YOU
POETRY IS LIFE AND LIFE IS POETRY
