WHAT IS POETRY?

Written by Mrs Alton, Head of English

This is a question we often pose to students as we embark upon a new topic of learning about rhythm, rhyme schemes and extended metaphor. But is the answer changing with each generation and, perhaps more importantly, does it even matter?

I remember being taught about poetry through song lyrics. This now feels slightly passé. Our Gen Z students are exposed to language in poetic form through TikTok and Instagram in a much purer format. They will be familiar with the rising stars of poetry on social media through the written form or the oral nature of the poetic word, and they will have a strong sense of what poetry means in the digital age for them and for their digitised time. In fact, it is the age of technological advancement that is partially accountable for a resurgence in poetry consumption. Fans of ‘of the moment’ poems responding to current affairs also yearn for physical copies of their favourite Instapoets for prosperity. This has led to an upsurge of consumers (notably teenage girls and young women) of poetry books in both the UK and the US where sales increased by 12% and 21% respectively in 2019. The digital era is not killing off traditional literary forms as we might suppose, but rather promoting them. Poets such as George the Poet and Kate Tempest may have reached their poetic notoriety through diverging either from music to poetry or from poetry to music, but it is through vlogs, podcasts, TikTok, YouTube and Instagram that artists find platforms to be heard. And being heard is the essential element. It is that purity of being exposed to poetry via the oral medium that can be largely significant. It is important to recognise that our students do not need to be ‘tricked’ into liking poetry if we present it as popular songs. They like poetry as poetry. They are familiar with it and it does not need to be wrapped in ‘relevant’ shiny paper to engage them. It is relevant just as it is. That’s not to say that it is not important to understand the evolution of poetry. Finding and tracing poetry’s heritage and visiting how it is constructed enables us to analyse poems, but also provides the key to play with language and create poetry for ourselves. Ultimately though, it exposes us to great literature and an ability to deepen a palate of appreciation of the English language.

During lockdown, The Kingsley School English department chose to look at the poetic form of sonnets with Year 9 students. Shakespeare published these 154 poems during one of the many ‘lockdowns’ triggered by the outbreaks of plague in London which saw the closure of the theatres. The RSC recorded their actors at home performing the sonnets. Sir Patrick Stewart recorded himself reading a sonnet a day on his Instagram feed during lockdown. Solace was found in history and solace is often found in poetry. The performance of these sonnets set the foundation for our study. Students then went on to understand the poetic structure before writing their own. They made the poems relevant to their own interests and emotions and they were incredibly moving. Likewise, Year 7 students studied elements of Chaucer’s ‘The Canterbury Tales’ and created pilgrims of their own. The transferable skills of studying poetry of the past makes the poems relevant for today. And that is my point: poetry is always relevant. Whether it is through the celebration of National Poetry Day, an introduction to Chaucer, Shakespeare’s sonnets, learning a poem and reciting it by heart or studying the GCSE poetry anthology, our students benefit from considering how language can be manipulated and curated to have maximum impact. And, let’s not forget, exposure to poetry can be just as important as the methodical analysis of the form. Ana Sampson published an anthology entitled ‘She is Fierce’ in 2018 full of ‘Brave, bold and beautiful poems by women’ and just sharing some of my favourites with students this year was incredibly worthwhile. So, whether it is George the Poet, Brian Bilston or Emily Dickinson that enables you to connect to poetry, it doesn’t really matter. Having an answer to ‘what is poetry?’ perhaps doesn’t really matter either. Poetry is everywhere. Look for it, notice it and appreciate it. It can be a great place of solace and comfort, and solace and comfort are always relevant.

My big mouth was a terrible mouth, It chatted all the time. It weaved it’s way through people business, But for me it was not a crime. I crunched up drama And munched up lies, Swallowed chatter And spat out porky pies. But somehow through all this mess That my mouth had created, I couldn’t see the damage I produced within people’s mind. I carried on with my vicious life As if I had done nothing wrong, But as soon as I walked to school Everyone fled and ran. My life had turned into a disaster Because of my big mouth. Why didn’t my parents teach me Not to judge and not to shout? As soon as I found out what was wrong I decided it was time, To change myself and be a good person To laugh and to be kind. So now I have a good life, I play and I have friends. So this is a lesson to everyone To always make amends.

This poem, inspired by Steve Camden’s novel and produced during one of our REACH Higher homework weeks, was ‘Highly Commended’ in an Independent Schools Association competition.