For my Children’s literature class we spent an entire week discussing poetry. It was really the first time I had discussed poetry on that type of level since I had started writing it. It, like the rest of the class, was eye opening. Poetry can be expressed and utilized in more ways than I had previously considered. It can be used to teach children to write, express themselves and to learn a new language.
I may be in the minority but I always saw poetry as this “grand” work. Now more than ever I see it as an expression of emotion that anyone and everyone is capable of making.
One of the questions we were asked to end the section was how would we define poetry?
“Poetry is a window to the soul of the poet”
“Poetry offers readers the opportunity to explore emotions, ideas and the extraordinary use of language”
“Poetry is the best words in the best order”
The definition I connect to most is that of Robert Frost,
A Poem Begins in Delight and Ends in Wisdom.
How Do You Define Poetry?
Literary.Land.of.Alysia 
Poetry is that which the heart wishes to say and gives it to the hand to deliver.
Poetry can be at times a hard task master but always illuminating.
Poetry is voice for the unvoiced, the unexpressed thought or feeling…Poetry is the spoon that stirs the thick syrup of soul…Poetry is how we perceive the world…Life is Poetry…A Spring day, budding apple blossoms, birds chirping…bullfrogs grumping…
I believe poetry defies any definition. It adheres to no, single, rigid format, and is not bound to the conventions of what is deemed “proper grammar.” In the end, it is a distillation, or expansion, of complex emotions and ideas, usually done without any direct reference to the specific matter being written about. That’s sort of how I see it.
Reblogged this on Words from across Oceania and commented:
# This is a precious view to me as I have always believed & defined Poetry to be “An unleashing of the emotions that the Poet is feeling” TY ~ Debs x
I love reading and writing poetry. I can only define with these words that William Butler Yeats wrote a long time ago. I think the poem is titled “When You Grow Old”. He wrote that ONLY one man had loved the “pilgrim soul” in you”: To me this was POETRY at it’s best.
This poem got me more interested in poetry than any other,
“My poems are not poems… When you know that my poems are not poems, then we can speak of poetry. ” -Ryokan
Poetry is imagination, poetry is passion, poetry is almost impossible to define. It is as varied as each individual who sets pen to paper.
personal–and if it isn’t? Masterful.
“Poetry is the language in which man explores his own amazement.” – Christopher Fry
“Poetry is the statement of a relation between a man and the world.” – Wallace Stevens
“Like the onion, poetry is a constant discovery. Peel the onion, layer after layer, until its very heart is reached…it adds taste, zest, and a sharp but sweet quality that enriches our lives.” – Ruth Gordon
Poetry is capturing moments, holding them briefly, and then releasing them back into the world.
I also enjoy Marianne Moore’s definition: http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15654
You just gave me something to make my long essay on poetry complete!! Thanks!
I think poetry is a unique way of revealing the world. One that allows us to reveal the unseen; and poets can see.
Glad I could help 🙂