Composing or Analyzing Poetry?
Last week, I wrote the dumbest poem of my life. And, also last week, I wrote a six page synthesis on a poem that took me about three to four hours. The dichotomy of man, some might say. My experience with both was interesting. I find creative writing and analytical writing to be completely different, both in form and overall feeling.
The Joel that wrote the Spongebob poem is definitely not the same Joel that wrote the poetry analysis essay. However, there are ways that writing about poetry has influenced how I compose poetry.
First of all, simply writing about meter makes you think about what form you want to compose your poem in. Second, as a poet, or at least in my brain, I always think about different metaphors and symbolism I can incorporate into my poetry. As both the analyzer and the poet, I can see both sides of the creative process. I view literature as a collaborative art, especially as someone who has written more essays than I can count on both my hands. Literature becomes active and collaborative when someone like me decides to ask questions or make an argument around the text. Writers do not put their art into the world so that people passively read their work. No! They want us to think, to argue, to form ideas! And that is what I want to teach my students.
To read actively and hungrily. To allow what they read inspire them to compose their own prose or poetry, even if it is just a dumb acrostic poem. I also want them to remember that art is not a luxury, as Audre Lorde says, it is a crucial part of our lives. Without literature we fail to activate the spark within us that yearns to participate and commune with others.
Dear Joel,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading about your experiences with analyzing poetry and creating poetry. I like how you explained the dichotomy between academic and creative writing, and how you literally described yourself as two separate people writing each piece. I agree that I find them both to be completely different. Similarly to you, since we did the two writing assignments so closely together, analyzing poetry first made me realize the many important components that form a strong poem. It propelled me to think about how to use language to truly immerse readers in an experience or moment rather than to use standard academic language that simply describes and states. I feel that, in academic writing, we are merely observers, formulating ideas and arguments from those observations. Furthermore, I love how you explained that literature is a form of collaborative art, not only in the actual art piece itself, but also in the various interpretations derived from it. Lastly, nice connection to Audre Lorde!
Sincerely,
Natalie Ramirez
Joel, I felt the same way when writing my own poem! I knew that somehow the person that can write an entire essay about a 16 line poem, was not the same person that was now trying to create something. I think it is easy for us to get caught up in the realistic side of writing and stop our creative side from creating art. We analyze every detail which I think makes us second guess ourselves when creating our own poems. But then again, isn’t our life and the way we describe it a form of art already? We try to find hidden details in poems and even though we can’t fully explain the reason for our poetry, I believe that the art lies in individual interpretation. (Even your Spongebob poem mirrored a real life event.) All this to say that writing about poetry and writing poetry is definitely not the same thing but reading poetry does help us understand poetic elements that we can use in our own art.
ReplyDelete-Antonieta Mariscal
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ReplyDeleteHi Joel!
ReplyDeleteI loved both your poems that you have presented in class. The SpongeBob one was very funny as well. I think the idea of taking a memory of when you were younger and tying it into something you grew up watching was meaningful. Poetry will always stand out and be different since it takes the experience of the author. And every single author has lived different and interesting lives so not all works will ever be true copies of others. I agree with your statements and how poetry should be a form of entertainment and a way to express yourself truly. There is no right and wrong when it comes down to creating art. So by teaching future students the values of expressing themselves creatively we will be able to create a new generation of open expression and ideas
-Heleyna Guardado
Joel-that was NOT a dumb poem never say that about your creativity !
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