It's safe to say that poetry is no longer a prominent feature of everyday life but is that to say that it is dying? Or that it no longer exists? And if poetry is dying what will be next for literary progression?
John Keats wrote "The Poetry of The Earth is Never Dead" some would say otherwise. It's safe to say that poetry is no longer a prominent feature of everyday life but is that to say that it is dying? Or that it no longer exists? And if poetry is dying what will be next for literary progression? As a lover of poetry I would argue that poetry is far from dead, if anything it's been lost, but its slowly beginning to emerge again, and no this is not higher English, nor is it an attempt to make you fall in love with poetry all over again; it's simply an opinion.
Classical poetry may be dead; the works of Wordsworth, Brown and Shakespeare may never be uttered or known to the snowflake generation. Despite this, other artists are making the rounds on Facebook such as Hilburn with excerpts from his 'Our Numbered Days' works which are certainly redefining poetical norms and introducing a whole new generation to poetry, with themes and stories that the audience can really relate to and understand.
Throughout history there have always been those who challenge poetical norms and weren't always met with the greatest appreciation such as the works of Charles Bukowski. The millennials are rewriting the norms allowing for change in areas that are so well known and loved by many meaning that poetry is not dying, it's only changing and adapting.
Having spoken to some of the members of RGU's very own Creative Writing and Poetry Society many believe that poetry is "evolving" and "masquerading itself as other things". It's been hidden in everyday life like in the books of Dr. Suess and Eminen
It would be naive to think that such a classical artform that has lived for thousands of years would be dying when online sharing is at it's optimum. It may not be a prominent or as set in stone as past works but we are the generation of change. We're rewriting poetical rules and creating our own path, our own artform.
This isn't to say that over the past few years poetry hasn't taken a backseat and used only as a tool to make political remarks as was seen during the Women’s March that took place all over the world. Many celebrities and feminists use poetry as a way to get their points across an attempt to strike down the opposition, but now it is deserving a place among our bookshelves once again and becoming more than just a political statement, poetry is far from dead it's just “evolving”.