The Power of Poetry
Think More Like a Poet
Like the sundial, all art holds symbolic meaning to us.
The sundial is our connection to the past and all its endless facets. It’s a representation of our history and all its infinite dusty treasures.
Our civilization has difficulty interpreting art as merely external representations of what goes on internally-as abstractions or as outward manifestations of inner beings because, in so many ways, we are ignoring this simple assumption and thereby limiting our knowledge of art.
How To Think Like a Poet?
If you want to become the greatest artist of all time, don’t simply copy the greats but instead try and understand that you are merely an echo of earlier artists.
And if you’re in doubt, remember: it’s not what the Poet says that matters. It’s how he says it. And if he says it is a poem, then it might be worth your attention.
And if you want to be the first person to understand a poem, follow these simple steps:
Step One: Ask a question.
Not the type of questions like “What does ‘Step Two’ mean?” or “Who is Poet?”-the answers you can quickly find on Google. The type of questions that lead you to exciting ideas, things that make you ask yourself, “how can I possibly know the answer to this?”. The questions that lead to the deepening of your thought process are the ones that make you feel like you really have a grasp on something. So don’t be satisfied with answers — ask better questions.
Step Two: Don’t rush through it.
It’s straightforward, particularly if you’re reading the poetry of a familiar author, to get caught up in the lines that sound familiar and gloss over the rest of the poem. That’s unfortunate because there are probably some gems there that could take some time to reveal themselves. So put this one on hold and go get a snack — you won’t regret it.
Step Three: Break it down.
Don’t read the entire poem through once like you’re reading a novel. Instead, read just a few lines and think about what you’ve just read. Ask yourself what’s happening in the poem. Try and put your finger on some of the mood and theme.
Step Four: Read it aloud.
It’s challenging to hear someone else read a poem aloud — you can’t help but be dragged along by the music of poetic language alone. Poets are masters of language; they use rhythm and meter to create a kind of sound that both engages the intellect and is an auditory pleasure. Listen to it.
Step Five: Reread it.
Listen for the little things — how a line is rhymed or written in different types of verse, and then go back and reread that line.
Step Six: Expand your mind’s eye.
This is probably the most essential step-and; it can make all of your previous steps worthwhile if you do it right. Allow yourself to step beyond a single reading of a poem and think about its meaning in terms of its other characteristics.
Step Seven: Don’t get caught up.
All of these steps are somewhat fluid. You can go back and forth between them in whatever order suits you, but if you genuinely want to understand a poem, it’s important to remember that you are free to move around and explore whatever draws your interest.
This is an exercise, so pursue the most intriguing topics; don’t feel like you have to complete all seven steps for every poem.
Think like a poet.
A poem is made of language, but it is not “about” the words it uses in many ways. Instead, the poem exists as an echo of the feelings and ideas that the terms represent. Therefore, you must learn to listen to what is expressed by those words in a very non-literal way — and then you may be able to think like a poet.
