Poetry Analysis Essay

?One may try and seek a definition for poetry, but there is no correct answer. In fact, each person will have his own version for the definition of poetry. But that is the beauty of poetry, the same poem will have a unique meaning for each individual that reads it. The most fitting description for poetry comes from the character Pablo Neruda in Michael Radford’s 1994 film Il Postino: The Postman, â€Å"When you explain poetry it becomes banal. Better than any explanation is the experience of feelings that poetry can reveal to a nature open enough to understand it. † Poetry is so crucial to have in the world because of the functions poetry serves as, the special qualities poetry has, and life without poetry would simply be boring. ?Poetry can function as an epiphany, awakening, for someone or to express one’s feelings. After reading a strong piece of poetry one can feel a sudden growth in confidence to change something about their life or community. In Il Postino, the character Mario Ruoppolo has an epiphany after researching poetry with the poet Pablo Neruda. Mario found the confidence to stand up to the politician who was exploiting the people of the island. Mario also became a political activist for the communist party. Poetry also helped Mario express his love for poetry. After reading a lot of poetry, Mario found confidence within himself to make changes. The epiphany poetry gave him made Mario realize he had the ability to make a difference within himself and the community. Poetry cannot just act as a catalyst for an awakening but also as a channel to express inner feelings. Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s poem â€Å"How do I love thee? Let me count the ways† expresses her love for her husband Robert Browning. Browning uses similes throughout the poem to express her love, â€Å"I love thee freely, as men strive for Right/ I love thee purely, as they turn to Praise. † Browning used poetry to express her forbidden love to her husband, whom she eloped with. Poetry can express other strong feelings the writer wishes to share. Poetry can be used to trigger an epiphany or to share one’s feelings. ?What is also great about poetry is that it allows writers to be creative, and to use special poetic qualities such as figures of speech or rhyme scheme. In â€Å"Young and Old† by Charles Kingsley he uses metaphors to describe the theme of aging. â€Å"When all the world is young, lad/ And all the trees are green†¦ When all the world is old, lad/ And all the trees are brown. † His successful use of metaphors paints a picture throughout the poem of being young to growing old. The use of metaphors helps the reader grasp the concept Kingsley was portraying. Rhyme scheme is a special quality poets use to make poems have a playful twist. In Philip Larkin’s poem â€Å" This Be the Verse†, the rhyming brings down the serious tone of the poem. â€Å"The fuck you up, your mum and dad/ They may not mean to, but they do. / They fill you with the faults they had/ And add some extra, just for you. † The rhyming at the end of every other line puts a playful twist on the serious tone and the strong language used. Poetry lets the writer be creative in how he wants the use poetic devices throughout the poem. ?Most importantly, try imagining life without poetry. If you’re having difficulty, try imagining the most popular genre of poetry, music. Music is a part of everyone’s life and is used in various ways such as entertainment or to cope with hardships. Music is a form of poetry with a musical beat to go along the lyrics. Artists use their music to cope with strong emotions. For example, British musician Adele used her music as a way to manage her break-up with her boyfriend. Songwriting has the same elements of poetry in the sense of expressing one’s feelings like Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Musicians also write music to shine some light on the corruption in politics. Rapper Immortal Technique uses his music to show how America’s policy making is strongly influenced by the military and corporations. He encourages society to confront policy makers to please the average working person, not the wealthiest people in society. He uses his music to inspire people to make changes like Neruda influenced Mario to have an epiphany in Il Postino.