The Definition of Poetry

Poetry is the artistic expression of one’s own thoughts and experiences in words. Not only does poetry express the author’s feelings but it is an extension of the author itself. It is artistic in the sense that there is no wrong way to write poetry, since the author decides how their work is put together themselves. With symbols and many hidden meanings, poetry is open to many interpretations. Two great pieces of work, “The Raven”, by Edgar Allen Poe, and “This Is Just To Say”, by William Carlos Williams, depicts this definition of poetry. Though both style of writing is quite different, the meaning of poetry still exists in these two pieces of literature.

"The Raven", by Edgar Allen Poe, is a very dark poem. The poem may hold as a representation of Poe’s inner feelings at the time since his wife was ill. In turn, his feelings of depression and grief molded into his work, “The Raven”. This feeling is stated here when the poem reads, “From my books surcease of sorrow – sorrow for the lost Lenore – / For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore” (Poe 11-12). The reader can infer that the speaker in the poem is depressed over a woman who died. The speaker seems to be broken down by this fact, and since poetry can be a manifestation of the author’s feelings and experiences, this could prove a time in Poe’s life where he was heartbroken. Poetry is always open to interpretation and that is the beauty of it.

Poetry also contains symbols and in “The Raven”, the speaker’s lost lover, Lenore, is a prominent symbol. She represents idealized love and the loss of someone dear at the same time. The narrator misses this woman dearly and claims that she is one of a kind. The narrator then goes on to say that she even portrays a radiant maiden in which the angels named themselves (Poe 11). So much emphasis on the type of woman Lenore is proves her importance to the narrator and what she represents. Ironically, the Raven, could also be a symbol as well. A raven in nature portray omens, bad thoughts, generally a negative connotation. Being a dark poem, the Raven in this story represents death, the death of Lenore to be exact. The speaker wants his lover to come back, and by the Raven repeating the word “Nevermore”, it shows a representation of death and how once someone is gone, they really are gone (Poe 48). In this sense the Raven could also represent a loss of hope.

Poe’s artistry is manifested throughout “The Raven”. Being the eerie poem that it is, Poe adds creepy noises in his poem such as, “While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,/ As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door./ “Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door./ Only this and nothing more.” (Poe 3-6). There is even a dark bird who only seems to be able to speak the one word that the speaker does not want to hear. The poem reads like that of a musical piece with an AACBBB rhyming sequence. Poe has many other gimmicks in his piece such as the last line of every stanza being a little bit shorter, and even multiple uses of alliteration such as, “…tempest tossed thee…” (Poe 86). Reading the poem, it feels as if the rhythm, words, and events of the poem picks up as well. The way his words are pulled together gives a spooky sense that allows the reader to feel the dark vibe Poe has set. All of this put together is how Poe decided to depict poetry. Poe has his own unique way of portraying his thoughts and emotions into his writing, which is what poetry is.

“This Is Just To Say”, by William Carlos Williams, is a very different and unique type of poem. A first look at the piece, one can say that the poem is very short, even simple. With the first read, one can assume that the poem is just about a normal event in which the speaker ate a plum. The speaker then apologizes for the action. The speaker, who ate the plum, does not seem to care that he ate the plum at all. The apology given by the speaker does not seem intent in any sense whatsoever. The poem, with only twelve lines and no more than three words in each line, is extremely simple. It is easily interpreted and with its own sense of playful humor, the reader can see the kind of man that Williams was, simple and funny. Poetry tends to draw back and reflect upon the writer and this piece does that.

The symbol in “This Is Just To Say”, is the plum. Some readers can interpret the poem on a deeper level of understanding, inferring that the plum represents the forbidden fruit from the Garden of Eden. In this case, the speaker seems to be Eve, who though apologizes, knew that she should not have eaten the fruit. Likewise, the speaker knew that the fruit was not of the speaker’s ownership, it was someone’s breakfast, yet the speaker ate it anyways. So even though the plum represents the forbidden fruit, it can also represent deception and lies. With the religious reference, since poems reflect upon the author, one can assume that William Williams was a Christian. In fact, Williams was a Unitarian. Again that is the beauty of poetry, it is always open to interpretation as the reader tries to grasp an understanding of not only what the poem is about, but what the author wants to tell the audience as well.

Williams’ artistry is also displayed in “This Is Just To Say” as well. The poem is broken down into three stanzas, with twelve lines, and the author uses enjambment throughout the whole poem. One example of enjambment is when the poem reads, “and which/ you were probably/ saving/ for breakfast” (Williams 4-8). The use of enjambment throughout the poem signifies the importance of each line since everything being told in the poem is connected. The poem contains no regular beat or rhyming sequence, therefore it is a free verse. One thing to note is that the whole poem reads smoothly even though it is broken up with enjambment. The poem has no punctuation but seems to form two sentences based on two capitalized words and their complete thoughts. The word “I” in the beginning is the start of the first sentence (Williams 1). The word “Forgive” forms the second sentence (Williams 9). The poem surprises the reader with each new line and the whole poem contains a humorous effect. The use of imagery is seen in this short poem as well. Food imagery to be exact. The plums were described to be in an icebox, referring to something cold, being probably saved for breakfast, plus being delicious and sweet. This forms a picture in the reader’s mind. The title is interesting in itself. “This Is Just To Say”, when read with the poem, could possibly be read as the first sentence. Either that or meaning that the poem really is just something the speaker wanted to share, or say. The use of enjambment, imagery, and how it is written in Williams’ own way, is his style of poetic art.

Poetry is the style of writing in which the author expresses their thoughts and feelings. In this sense it serves as an extension of the writer. Poetry has a wide range of how it can be written, with different symbols, as well as many different interpretations. Two examples that depicts the definition of poetry in different ways includes two classic poems, “The Raven”, by Edgar Allen Poe, and “This Is Just To Say”, by William Carlos Williams. The two poem chosen shows the range of how poetry can be written and how meaningful poetry really is. With diverse styles, both poems still engages the reader towards understanding not only the author, but what the author wants the reader to understand about his or her work. That is what poetry is, and what it is about, as seen in these two great pieces of work.

Works Cited

Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Raven." Poetry Foundation. Poetry Foundation, n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2016.

Williams, William Carlos. "This Is Just To Say." Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 1962. Web. 04 Apr. 2016.

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