Poetry

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

I've always thought that. I suppose you're right, however — in regards to this. Thanks. :)

Maybe it's like love.

I would also think a little basic knowledge of the fundamentals of poetry would help. Types of poems, Structure, Meter, Rhyme.

There are loads of websites out there with information on how to read poetry.

Of course all this takes a bit of effort. Reading poetry is a skill. Some people pick it up right away, others need to work at it.

http://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/ReadingPoetry.html

Once you start to pick at it...

Oh and metaphor and simile - poets love them. Understand those and you're half way there.

Check out Raymond Carver's poetry if you haven't already, Jessica.

I think, sometimes, it's like a piece of scenery, or a snatch of music... it's appeal is beyond definition. You can take college courses to learn about rhyme schemes, diction, metrical forms, etc., which might aid your appreciation and understanding.... or might not! As someone once said... 'what's interesting is the mystery'.

Or, to put it more poetically... over to Walt Whitman:

WHEN I heard the learn’d astronomer;
When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me;
When I was shown the charts and the diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them;
When I, sitting, heard the astronomer, where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,
How soon, unaccountable, I became tired and
sick;
Till rising and gliding out, I wander’d off by myself,
In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,
Look’d up in perfect silence at the stars.

I would suggest The Poetry Dictionary (John Drury)

http://books.google.co.uk/books/about/The_Poetry_Dictionary.html?id=vERZ...

But also York notes are very helpful in showing you how to deconstruct poems, I find.

Also some good poetry Anthologies. 'The Norton Anthology of Poetry' and the 'Oxford
Anthology of English Poetry' are very good.
They really helped to introduce me to alot
of new poets.

Also on Youtube there are some episodes of the excellent programme 'Arrows of Desire'
where contemporary poets (such as Tom Paulin) analyse various famous poems.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lv5_20DSpbk&feature=relmfu

Jessica,

I think you need to let go of what a poem's intended meaning is and concentrate on what it means to you in order to get the most out of it.

I definitly know where you're coming from though - you almost want to be in the writer's head at the moment they wrote each poem in order to capture all the subtle feelings which helped make it shine. Try reading some prefaces to romantic poetry anthologies - see the link below. It is the preface to Wordsworth's Lyrical Ballads (along with some other stuff - I think it's an A Level English practice exam or something). It gives you a better idea of the social/historical context of his poems, and an insight into the insecure mind of the man himself (he would second guess his readers and try to premeditiate the issues they might take with his poetry, addressing it in the preface).

You might also be interested in his poetry of course!

http://www.stjohns-chs.org/english/Romantic/Rm-Ws.html

"I think you need to let go of what a poem's intended meaning is and concentrate on what it means to you in order to get the most out of it."

This makes perfect sense, particularly with abstract verse. You can never know exactly what is going on in the poet's mind, or what the verse means to them. It means whatever the reader's mind it interprets it to mean. Art has to be subjective and non-scientific - otherwise it loses it's soul - or something like that.

JessicaA---You ask a very valid question. I suggest you simply take one small bite at a time, chew it carefully, swallow, then bask in the beauty of its words, savouring the scent of present moments. PS. A Dictionary and Thesaurus also helps. Richard LP

Poetry is a celebration of language, the use of words to paint pictures and rythm to make music. Read it with your heart as well as your eyes and an open mind and you wont go far wrong.
Linda

I think when you're reading a poem and you don't understand it, ask.

It's good to see that people are starting to do that. I think there's this worry of offending the poet, and of looking stupid, but I think it's a compliment when you ask because it shows that you are taking a genuine interest.

I think what Linda W Cress has said to you is excellent. I shall take this on board too. of course there will still be unfathomable and pretentious shite - but ..... open mind/ open heart / celebration of language etc (what she said) - brilliant!

Agree with all that's been said so far.

For me, a case in point in the whole 'appreciation/understanding' issue is Wallace Stevens' 'The Emperor of Ice Cream'. I've been fascinated by that poem since I first read it about 30 years ago. I hadn't a clue what it was about then. But the language, the imagery, and the sinister and disturbing undertones cast a spell on me. Even now, I can't be entirely sure what the poem is about. I'm not sure I want to know, though. I don't want to demystify it, because it would probably lose some of its power.

Call the roller of big cigars,
The muscular one, and bid him whip
In kitchen cups concupiscent curds.
Let the wenches dawdle in such dress
As they are used to wear, and let the boys
Bring flowers in last month's newspapers.
Let be be finale of seem.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.

Take from the dresser of deal,
Lacking the three glass knobs, that sheet
On which she embroidered fantails once
And spread it so as to cover her face.
If her horny feet protrude, they come
To show how cold she is, and dumb.
Let the lamp affix its beam.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.

Thank you all so much for your comments.

Parson- What you've mentioned touched me, and instantly, I agreed.

White Dwarf- Thank you, thank you, thank you for pointing that out. In the past, I tried to read poetry from famous poets and understand on my own what they really mean, in addition to different types of poetry — the structured kind. I always thought that poetry was, in some way, always structured some how, even if not rhyming. I'll be sure to take a look at that link. Thanks again. :)

Stan- Thank you for that insight. Raymond Carver... never heard of him. Is he like Shakespeare, by any chance? At any rate, I'm definately not old enough for college, lol, but I'm probably going to be studying English once of age, and they teach poetry in those sorts of classes, I'm sure. Also, those poems you've posted got me thinking. I find poetry so fascinating... and I still need to teach my brain to comprehend them. I mean, without even looking into the topic, I sometimes feel as though I'm already able to reach into the heart of it and really see what it has to offer.

well-wisher- Thanks for the links and proposals. :)
Is it weird that I'm kind of stoked to look into those? :P

ItsSteveDave- As a matter of fact, I do want to be in the reader's head at the moment they wrote each poem in order to capture all the subtle feelings which helped make it shine; I wish to see what everyone else sees. Thank you so much for the link.

Richard- Thank you for your lovely comment. Usually, I would find myself reading the poem in one go, and then sitting there for a moment, thinking, Whaa...? or, I think I'm understanding this [it must mean this or that] and I'll then simply become half-satisfied with what I thought it meant (basically, I'll see it a certain way, but deep down I'll assume that what I've interpreted is utterly incorrect. :P I never actually thought of using a dictionary or thesaurus... That might help. :P

Linda- Thank you, I'll remember that. :)

Sooz- Rarely, I ask for clarification of a poem for the exact reasons you've assumed. I feel so dumb when I read something and don't get it like most everyone else. But you know what? You're right. I'll never really know if I don't ask.

alice- Haha, you're right; she's right. Thank you. :D

lailoken- Thanks, again, for your comment. "Art has to be subjective and non-scientific - otherwise it loses it's soul - or something like that." I like that, a lot.

You've all helped me understand that poetry truly is unique. It seems that it's up to you, specifically, to realize what a poem means to you. So, let me get this straight... Poetry isn't at all what I thought it was: structured (even if it is...), it's what your heart makes it out to be (no matter how abstract or different).

William Wantling: 'Poetry'

Raymond Carver like Shakespeare? The Shakespeare of the short story, perhaps. He's my literary hero. I draw a lot of inspiration from him. His poetry, too, is very accessible. No fancy diction. And his essays about writing in his collection 'Fires' are a must-read for you! Here's one of the best:

http://www.writingtolive.com/2011/09/becoming-writer-raymond-carvers-ess...

You should find his story and poetry collections in your library. Check him out here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Carver

...and here's one to whet your appetite:

This Morning

This morning was something. A little snow
lay on the ground. The sun floated in a clear
blue sky. The sea was blue, and blue-green,
as far as the eye could see.
Scarcely a ripple. Calm. I dressed and went
for a walk -- determined not to return
until I took in what Nature had to offer.
I passed close to some old, bent-over trees.
Crossed a field strewn with rocks
where snow had drifted. Kept going
until I reached the bluff.
Where I gazed at the sea, and the sky, and
the gulls wheeling over the white beach
far below. All lovely. All bathed in a pure
cold light. But, as usual, my thoughts
began to wander. I had to will
myself to see what I was seeing
and nothing else. I had to tell myself this is what
mattered, not the other. (And I did see it,
for a minute or two!) For a minute or two
it crowded out the usual musings on
what was right, and what was wrong -- duty,
tender memories, thoughts of death, how I should treat
with my former wife. All the things
I hoped would go away this morning.
The stuff I live with every day. What
I've trampled on in order to stay alive.
But for a minute or two I did forget
myself and everything else. I know I did.
For when I turned back i didn't know
where I was. Until some birds rose up
from the gnarled trees. And flew
in the direction I needed to be going.

Sorry... I can never do enough to get people reading Carver! :)

Hello there dear JA.

Try and take a look at any " The Big Issue "
page " Street Lights " poetry by mostly homeless, ex- homeless plus other vulnerable and disadvantaged people.
Regards.

I don't think they get The Big Issue in Canada, but there may be a local equivalent.

new ScoZen
Hello! I perfectly agree with you!
Re; The big issue two of Blightersrock in this week,
"Little Wonder" and "It Won't Hurt". I had a couple in too. Not a poet,great see the homeless, work and paintings and drawings. I went 7 years,learn't a lot. Then closed long time,joined great AbcTales.
But had a terrific lot too learn, with the Editor T.Cook help understanding and all help all it is amazing achieved,mainly read other's work. Not so great at all,as poems and stories coming on.
I was never going to comment when I first started,thought be rude! and ask meanings describe their meanings of poems etc; see one is now.
Your words are bang on though. Poems like most individuals may feel inside,warmth,love,or someone dies. Old or young just gebun,someone having fun!
An escapement to stretch the mind, more than it can.
Or maybe just be there hold a hand.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder! what ever circumstances it may be!
Look at beauty of nature the flowers,
mountains and the raging blue sea
Bird's cawing for food
A smile no-one thinks anything is wrong!

A mother may be depressed
The baby that cries when wet
Lonely have maybe no one at all
Just be thankful and prayers be answered too.
take care
cavalcaderl julie x

I do not write poetry much, so it is hard for me to decipher, but it is fun to read.

I totally agree to that. :P