Poetry: Defined in the Brain

What makes poetry beautiful is its ability to be interpreted many different ways. There are as many definitions of poetry as there are ways of interpreting a poem. It seems as though the most central characteristic to the definition of poetry is its unwillingness to be defined. Poetry is tantalizingly tough to define as there are so many components to a piece of work. However, a comprehensible definition can be discovered when looking at a few specific pieces of work. Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister by Robert Browning, Daystar by Rita Dove, and The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe are extremely helpful in trying to understand the true definition of poetry. These three respected poems convey that poetry ultimately consists of figurative language that is concerted so it’s either demonstrative, evocative, or even both.

Figurative language is used in writing to make poetry more effective, persuasive, and impactful. Demonstrative figurative language is important in a poem’s effectiveness, as it shows thoughts and feelings. It can be compared to having the same effect as a character in a play. Through the character’s words and actions, one can interpret how the character feels. As a result, one can possibly relate with the feelings of the character. A characters’ words and actions can also go a long way in the characterization within a poem. As in Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister by Robert Browning, the reader is met with a specific time in a dramatic situation, much like a character in a play:

Gr-r-r---there go, my heart’s abhorrence!

Water your damned flower-pots, do!

If hate killed men, Brother Lawrence,

God’s blood, would not mine kill you!

What? Your myrtle-bush wants trimming?

Oh, that rose has prior claims---

Needs its leaden vase filled brimming?

Hell dry you up with its flames! (Browning 1-8)

Early in the first stanza, the character speaking shows a considerably uncharitable attitude toward his acquaintance, Brother Lawrence. With the help of symbolism, the author demonstrates his dislike of Brother Lawrence. In the first stanza, the character talks a lot about the flower pots as well as his myrtle bush. In poetry, flowers are usually a symbol of beauty and innocence. The character here insists that Brother Lawrence needs to water his flower-pots. He explains that his myrtle-bush cannot be trimmed, as it already has prior claims. With the help of the symbol of a flower, the character shows that Brother Lawrence is not innocent at all. Everything about his flowers need fixing. He needs to water them, as well as trim them in order to make the appearance better. Not only has he characterized Brother Lawrence, he’s helped demonstrate himself to the reader as well. By being extremely expressive with the use of symbols throughout the poem, the speaker has perfectly set the tone and the mood for the poem. Effected by this tone and mood, the reader can eventually form an opinion of the speaker himself. Since the tone is mocking, and the mood hateful, the reader develops a dislike of the speaker and what he stands for. The reader also receives an understanding of what Brother Lawrence is like as a person. Being demonstrative certainly goes a long way in helping the reader understand the poem. Its importance is undeniable.

Another undeniably important characteristic of poetry is an evocative theme. Being evocative is comparable to the use of a colorful painting. Evocative language feeds the appetites of our senses. The descriptions in each poem are most likely a function of memory. Evocative language paints a full portrait on the canvas of our mind. Finally, it sets the scene, making it easy for the reader to understand and interpret what is happening before them. An example of this can be seen in Rita Dove’s Daystar. The reader receives a vivid set of imagery that helps build up an obvious theme:

She wanted a little room for thinking:

but she saw diapers streaming on the line,

a doll slumped behind the door.

So she lugged a chair behind the garage

to sit out the children’s naps.

Sometimes there were things to watch—

the pinched armor of a vanished cricket,

a floating maple leaf... (Dove 1-8)

From this illustrious poem, the reader comes to terms with the fact that this is about a life of a woman who feels trapped due to her role as a mother. She uses great descriptive adjectives to paint a picture of her tiresome life. Words like ‘slumped’ in line three convey the negative feelings she has towards her life. The slumped doll has the same amount of energy as the mother has at this point in her life. The redolence of the poem helps the reader take a peek into the world of the mother. Evocative language turns the reader themselves into a film producer. The motion picture is created within the mind. The imagery from obtained from words turns out to be helpful and efficient for writing.

The two efficient characteristics of figurative language can also be combined and used to compliment one another. Demonstrative writing brings the drama to the poem. Evocative writing helps create a realism in the poem, as well as garnering creativity in the reader’s eye. One of the most well known and over-analyzed poem out there, The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe, has a stunning combination of both:

And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain

Thrilled me---filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;

So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating

“ ’Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door;---

Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door;

This it is, and nothing more.” (Poe 12-17)

In this stanza, which appears early on in the poem, Poe uses fantastic descriptive adjectives that spring forward terrific imagery. In this case, the demonstrative nature of the writing creates an evocative sense as well. Poe uses descriptive phrases such as, “silken sad” and “filled me---thrilled me with fantastic terrors never felt before.” The use of descriptive adjectives thoroughly creates the scene of horror and uncertainty. The combination of description along with imagery helps to not only develop the setting early on, but also helps to describe the narrator. The setting is positioned with the purple curtain, the fantastic terrors, and the visitor at his chamber door. The description of the narrator is also derived from the use of complimenting figurative language. The narrator is thrilled and filled with terror. He’s so terrified that he thinks his heart may even stop. The demonstrative and evocative nature helps set the scene for the story, while at the same time characterizing the narrator.

With the fact that the amount of poetry is seemingly abundant, one may think that it would be impossible to come up with a solid definition. If thought of simply, however, specific traits come out of each and every poem. Figurative language is used by every author to convey their message. In Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister by Robert Browning, the use of symbolism helps demonstrate the character’s dislike for his counterpart, Brother Lawrence. In Daystar by Rita Dove, the evocative nature of the poem helps illustrate the life of a woman who feels trapped in the role of a mother and wife. Finally, Edgar Allen Poe uses demonstrative writing in The Raven to evoke imagery in order set the scene and characterize the narrator. The author in every poem wants the reader to come away with a certain idea. In order to convey that idea in a creative way, poets use figurative language that comes across as either demonstrative, evocative, or both. By realizing these writing nuances, a picture is formed illustrating what poetry is all about.

Works Cited

Browning, Robert. "Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister." The Norton Introduction to Literature. By Kelly J. Mays. 11th ed. New York: W. W. Norton, 2014. 709-10. Print.

Dove, Rita. "Daystar." The Norton Introduction to Literature. By Kelly J. Mays. 11th ed. New York: W. W. Norton, 2014. 736. Print.

Poe, Edgar Allen. "The Raven." The Norton Introduction to Literature. By Kelly J. Mays. 11th ed. New York: W. W. Norton, 2014. 838-41. Print.

Picture. John R. Neill's illustration for Poe's The Raven in "The Raven and other Poems" (Chicago : The Reilly & Britton Co, 1910).

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