How to enjoy a poem?

Open disclaimer at first - I am no expert at poetry. I am not going to tell you how to judge a poem, lest alone write one. In retrospect, this is my short attempt to introduce you to the world of complexities in poetry - more of a tasting guide. How to look for, to make your poetic experience richer.

Condensation

Poems present ideas in a condensed form. It is the length, that is the foremost character that differentiates it from a prose. Every word must be frugally picked, but it still should convey a lot. Notice how easily the poet is trying provide strength of will to the reader, and saying a lot in just a couple of lines, that is the magic in poetry.

Rhyme, Rhythm and Meter

Focus on your heartbeat, what do you notice? We are creatures of rhythm and repetition. It is the very essence of us being alive. Pattern provides pleasure, so evidently in language too we look for it. Rhythm is the building block of poetry. It is constructed using the emphasis on syllables that repeat. Notice the “o” sound on:

Rhyme on the other hand has nothing to do with patterns or spaced repetitions. It just similar sounding syllables. It also needs to be metered in sizable lengths of line endings. All three combined, provide the building block of any poetry.

Visuals

A good poem, should be able to paint a picture in your mind. They do it via metaphors. It is an unrealistic comparison, but has all the necessary weight to pull the visual. Notice how she is talking about walking as if she had a backyard of gold mine. First of all, nobody has a goldmine in their backyard and secondly if you did, you would still walk the same. But the framing of the words definitely cure towards her confidence in her oneself.

Why modern poetry is dead?

The best art always was a child of hard times. People who survive hard times, have very intense experience. Their experience is often reflected in poems. A good poem, challenges rudimentary thinking, and must be thought provoking. All the greatest social movements always had poem riding along.

In modern life, such depth of experience is rare. We do not have time to slow down and experience evenings. It has become safe to live and we have more free time at our hands, poets have lost the charm of a drastic life event.

Instead, poetry have become a personal sorrow outburst rather than a lens to the world. Moreover, it is tough to write a poem fitting the contours of all the above parameters, it is handwork. That is why, good poems are always classics. We have modern songs which are poetic, but don’t evoke the same level of emotions, that retros do.