To many people contemporary poetry is a turn-off. The reason for this is that the majority of these poems are boring. They are so because they fail to enable people to identify with them. The bulk of modern poetry is no longer about reader identification but about information transfer, information that could just as easily be conveyed in a prose form. These poems are written merely to convey the poet's thoughts and feelings about a specific event, situation or place he or she has experienced or is in the act of experiencing. The poet is not necessarily concerned with whether the reader is moved or not by the poem, so long as he or she understands clearly the information the poet is trying to convey. This may consist of some "important" insight gained from an experience, or it could be (as is usually the case) a jaded statement or commentary about some mundane aspect of contemporary life.
The popular song at its best, however, does more than this. It excites both the imagination and emotions; it enables you to unlock your own highly personal box of images, memories, connections and associations. This is most readily evidenced in the songs of Bob Dylan. Even the most perfunctory of his songs is able to do this to a greater extent than most "serious" poetry. This is because his songs (and to a lesser extent songs in general) frequently utilise imprecise and abstract statements rather than particular and specific ones. Contemporary poetry, on the other hand, does the exact opposite of this: it utilises particular and specific statements rather than imprecise and abstract ones.
Dylan is not afraid to generalise, for he knows that it is only through generalisation that the reader can recognise the specific. Keats understood this when he said that a poem 'should surprise by a fine excess, and not by singularity' and that 'it should strike the reader as a wording of his own highest thoughts, and appear almost as a remembrance' (letter to John Taylor, 27 February 1818).
David Bleich, in Readings and Feelings champions the creative powers of the reader. He believes writing about literature should not involve suppressing readers' individual concerns, anxieties, passions and enthusiasms because 'each person's most urgent motivations are to understand himself'. And as a response to a literary work always helps us find out something about ourselves, introspection and spontaneity are to be encouraged. Every act of response, he says, reflects the shifting motivations and perceptions of the reader at the moment of reading, and even the most idiosyncratic and autobiographical response to the text should be heard sympathetically. In this way the reader is able to construct, or create, a personal exegesis by utilising the linguistic permutations inherent in the text to construct units of meaning constituted from a predominantly autobiographical frame of reference. The ambiguities present in Dylan's oeuvre enable the listener to do exactly this.
Jeffrey Side has had poetry published in various magazines including: T.O.P.S., The White Rose, Poetry Salzburg Review, ism, Sphinx and Homeground. And his poems have appeared on various poetry web sites such as Poethia, nthposition, Ancient Heart Magazine, Blazevox, hutt and Cybpher Anthology.
He has reviewed poetry for New Hope International, Stride Magazine, Acumen and Shearsman Magazine. From 1996 to 2000 he was the assistant editor of The Argotist magazine. He now runs The Argotist Online web site:
http://www.argotistonline.co.uk/index.html
Poetry is more than just rhyming and prose that is... Read More
Azra, Azra, Wake up Azra. Wake up Azra, It is... Read More
It was not me as I am now. It was... Read More
A poetic comment that just welled up inside my head... Read More
Note: written 4-15-05, while driving through the Andes of Peru,... Read More
Do not be afraid to shine. This world needs what... Read More
Burning Autumn Leaves [1950s in St. Paul, Minnesota]My long steel... Read More
So many looked to you for inspiration,Unlikely hero for the... Read More
When I hear your voice inside my head it makes... Read More
I AM SO GRATEFUL for simpler times. Stores were closed... Read More
To many non-specialists of literature, poetry is deeply unsatisfying. There... Read More
The Torrents of HellHell's furnace- Likened to a chimney Vomits... Read More
In this modern age of technology, busy lifestyles, and obsession... Read More
now is not the time to open open that great... Read More
All Hail.Is your hospital full of aliens, despite new cleaning... Read More
There are many times I set up barriers and walls,... Read More
Way of Life: Rhymes of the IncaPizarro (Spanish conquistador ((1525))The... Read More
In the midst of darkness, there is light. In... Read More
Shakespeare's sonnets require time and effort to appreciate. Understanding the... Read More
1.Night in Jamaica [Peruvianism: 1810]It was a rainy night... Read More
In early fall, in Minnesota, the rain falls, falls, In... Read More
In the quiet of the arctic night- In its deep... Read More
Atahualpa's Game [Peruvian]Sometimes, it's not wise To share your wisdom... Read More
FIND the MAGICFind the Magic As you release old bondage... Read More
Tale of the Brick Maker, Of San Jerónimo, Peru... Read More
In Poetry: Meaning of WordsWhen I write poetry, I check... Read More
Part oneI see them in the skies I hear them... Read More
Have you ever thought about how nice it would be... Read More
The light of all eternity shines with me now /... Read More
You've been writing poetry since that first assignment in your... Read More
Sometimes we feel hard-pressed, Our backs against the wall;... Read More
Explore the meaning of poetry and the motivation of poets... Read More
I am among those who know that one never recovers... Read More
I'm not well. Can't you tell? Kinda low, so,... Read More
1) Doña Leonor's Revenge [1627 AD]Rafael Ortiz's fate Was... Read More
In the midst of darkness, there is light. In... Read More
On through the darkness she searches the bones Seeking the... Read More
How I wonder what he's doing as I sit alone... Read More
Dedícate to Antonio Castillo. L. Of. Los Andes UniversitarioOde to:The... Read More
Here are three more poems by the author, Dennis Siluk,... Read More
1)dying in the bar [sluggishly]yet, I would crawl too upto... Read More
Is poetry too complicated for the average reader? Is it... Read More
To many people contemporary poetry is a turn-off. The reason... Read More
Real Power.One Tsunami, and all our armies, Seem belittled by... Read More
Azra, Azra, Wake up Azra. Wake up Azra, It is... Read More
Sometimes we feel hard-pressed, Our backs against the wall;... Read More
I am not the one I was before yesterday.I cannot... Read More
1) End PoemWherever you are today- Is where you were... Read More
"I heard what you said, Red. Yet, I have to... Read More
Storm Rising along the Lima Coast [Summer of 2002]?wind was... Read More
You can do and you can be whatever you want.... Read More
There once lived an old man and his goodwife On... Read More
All Hail.Is your hospital full of aliens, despite new cleaning... Read More
Since Mohamed Ali?then Cassius Clay?announced that he had written "The... Read More
In the Mountains of Haiti(In the City)-July is a hot... Read More
During interviews and general conversations with the public,one of the... Read More
Memoirs of a Wasteland's RimIt still was light when she... Read More
Explore the meaning of poetry and the motivation of poets... Read More
FIND the MAGICFind the Magic As you release old bondage... Read More
The light of all eternity shines with me now /... Read More
What's a prisoner to do when justice fails and... Read More
Key Largo:The fans turn lazily in front of the doorThey... Read More
"Song of the Great Zimbabwe"Across the African, winter's skyIn the... Read More
What Hides behind the Minute?What hides behind the minute? It... Read More
Have you ever read the lyrics of a Simon and... Read More
Advance: in Mr. Siluk's poetry one finds symbolist values, sensuous... Read More
Poetry |