Week 1

This weeks readings were what I thought of as the history and rules of poetry. Chapter One introduced poetry as "a language within a language", where the music and rhythm of the words is equally or more important than the meaning. Poetry captivates the emotions by using sound to elevate meaning. I enjoyed the homework exercise, in particular examining a word in a way I'd never though to before. Chapter two focused on music, rhythm and rhyme as the foundations of the poets language. It is an ever evolving art influenced and understood much by its frame of reference in history. Rules are made and rules are challenged, tradition is thrown aside for modernity, poetry maintains an open door policy and the only rule is that it sounds right.

I struggled with the assignment of marking the music of a poem. Clearly this is something that takes time to learn, like tuning an instrument by ear. It was suggested to me that while reading poetry I walk. When I reach the end of a line I turn around and when I reach a period I stop. I find myself tapping out different rhythms on my chest while I speak the words so I can feel when I have it right. Some of the more obscure rhyming and rhythm techniques are very hard to spot as a novice. Writing a poem is an equal challenge, like an invention. You know what you want it to look (or sound) like in the end but its mostly trial and error. Sometimes you arrive at something completely different, but no less valuable. Its also a bit like putting together a jigsaw puzzle with the added benefit that occasionally you can change the shape of the pieces.

I'm excited by the explanations of poetry thus far and my mind is more accepting of something I previously thought of as horrid nonsense masquerading as writing. It seems as though any random collection of words can be called a poem as long as it fits the "sounds right" rule. Ordinarily such lack of discretion would turn me off to an idea, what is a thing if you cannot describe its structure or rules? What is the point of nonsense? But I see the acceptance of nonsense as being the point; art for the sake of art, creativity for the pure joy of it, it is the journey and not the destination, art imitating life. It doesn't always have to make sense in the end if it feels good in the process.

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