Poetry Reflection

Poetry has never really held any importance or place in my life. It had been something I knew, but never really took the time to interpret or appreciate. Of course, I had read poetry from time to time, but again, it didn’t really have a meaning. It was just poetry. Now that I’m able to interpret pieces of poetry better and have this better understanding of them, they’re much more enjoyable to read. With that, they have gained an importance in my life. For example, the lyrics to the song “Car Radio” have become different and more meaningful/important to me now that I can interpret them much more as a poem. Since I can interpret poems much more, they have so much more meaning to me now that I understand what the poem was trying to get across. Basically, it was easier to see the deeper meaning of a song/poem now that I had spent so much time in class with them. Poetry has become a more important part of my life because it has allowed me to interpret things into something I can actually relate to. “Car Radio” was no longer just a song about a guy driving his car with no radio on; it became a song about the thoughts we all have that we wish we didn’t-  the thoughts that torture us. Poetry has changed the meaning of songs from something very simple, to an idea that I never would have thought of, had I not interpreted it because of poetry. Since poetry has given me so much more things with meaningful messages and things to relate to, it has given me an opportunity to really treasure and appreciate poetry.

Poetry belonging to everyone is something that I think is automatically put in place. Anyone can read poetry, anyone can write it, and anyone can express their feelings. Of course, a few of those things may come with difficulty for some people. For example, to read poetry, you need to be able to read, of course. Unfortunately, not everyone can read, but that doesn’t mean they’re completely cut off from poetry. There are other ways to stay connected to poetry and to have a part of it belong to you in a way. You can always write poetry, or just express your feelings. Now, how is expressing your feelings connecting you to poetry and letting you keep a part of it? Well, you have to think of what poetry is. For me, I see it as expressed feelings put into words and rhymes. As long as a person can understand what they are feeling (or even expressing confused feelings and feelings you can’t really understand are good!), poetry can be made. Also, it’s hard to explain how I know poetry belongs to all of us. I mean, how do you know you’re free to walk to the park? How do you know you’re allowed to comb your hair? You just kind of do! For me, it’s the same for poetry. No one has gone and said, “Nope, you guys will absolutely not be reading poetry. No way.” Poetry is just a thing we’re allowed to do, or read, in this case.

I believe the life experiences of a poet do affect the poem he/she creates. Poetry is expressed feelings, and life experiences affect our feelings. With all the different things poets experience in their lives, they get to write poems about these new experiences and the feelings that come with them. You can think of it like this. Isn’t it far easier to write a poem about something you have experienced or a feeling you have felt rather than something you have no idea about? Of course you could always write a poem about a totally random thing, but would it actually be quality? It depends on the poet, but chances are it wouldn’t be as good as the poem based on something already experienced. For me, if I ever write a poem on my own free time, I always write it on something I can relate to. This can be real things I have experienced, things I’ve read about, things I have heard about a great deal, and things I imagine. The different things I’ve heard, read, and experienced do really affect a poem I may write. When I think of it like this, I would think that it’s probably the same for so many poets out there. A good example of this is ‘The Names’ by Billy Collins. He wrote the poem to honor the victims and families of the victims of 9/11. He experienced the pain of losing a loved one in the event, he heard about it a great deal, he read about it a great deal, or he was just able to express his feelings about it. I can’t say exactly which one (or multiple of those) caused him to write his poem, but I think he was able to connect with the people. The event of 9/11 had a widespread effect across the whole country, so I think he was able to understand their pain. Also, that’s only one rough example of how poets have been affected by their experiences. There have been many poets who have written about the places they’ve seen, places they’ve lived in or heard about. They’ve written about feelings they’ve felt, like love or sadness. Since there are so many examples of poets writing poems because they’ve been affected by something, it’s hard for me to think that life experiences would not affect a poet’s overall poem.