National Poetry Month Has Begun

I may be a few days late in getting on the bandwagon for National Poetry Month (which, as you all certainly know, is April), but better late than never. I'm a poetry advocate despite my not necessarily loving it until finally having had to teach it. It was only then that I grew to appreciate it as an art form and made it my goal to help students appreciate it, too.

Poetry is a mysterious thing, and I don't mean in the way that many students are taught to consider poetry (i.e., as a mystery that can be solved only by those with English degrees). I mean in these ways:

• It's some of the shortest, quickest reading of all literature, but it's perhaps the most avoided, at least by Americans.
• It can offer such interesting thoughts and images in so few words, prompting thinking in ways one hasn't thought before; but students, at least, whom I have known tend not to be interested in the intellectual work required to consider and reconsider a poem that, at first glance, may seem inscrutable.
• Despite the evolution of poetry, so many people still think that "rhyme" defines it. Solely "rhyme"--not "meaning," not "language choices," just whether the first and third lines end in rhyming words, the second and fourth, etc. A consequence of the influence of the greeting card industry, perhaps? (Many students, when asked to write a poem, will work very hard to think of rhyming words to plunk at the end of alternating lines regardless of whether those words make sense in the poem. Consequently, their poems are not about sense at all; they could just as well write "blah blah blah cat, blah blah blah seen, blah blah blah hat, blah blah blah green" for as little thought goes into the words that connect their rhyming words.)
• Many amateur poets who have gravitated to non-rhyming poetry have, unfortunately, floated away from meaning in poetry--they churn out lines of abstractions and disconnected images and potential pop or emo song lyrics that are not unified by a goal to communicate meaning to readers. These poets think that freedom from rhyme means freedom from all rules, but at least oughtn't there to be a reason for a reader to work through the poem? some payoff? some meaning underlying the wordplay?
• It takes very little time for an uninspiring teacher to teach students to hate poetry ("I don't understand it," "I can't figure out the hidden symbols the way the teacher can," "What I think it means isn't the same as what the teacher said it means," "Why are we reading only one type of poetry instead of a variety of styles and eras and forms?" etc.) but, often, a very long time for a subsequent teacher to convince students that poetry is for everyone . . . and that there are poets and poems for everyone. We need to read more poetry, not less, in order to find the poets and poems for us!

My ongoing campaign to promote poetry kicks into gear each April and is made easier by the on-line presence of many National Poetry Month-related Web sites. So, although the bullets above represent my mini-rant disguised as poetry-related mysteries to ponder, the bullets that follow represent resources for you, Gentle Reader, to celebrate National Poetry Month from the comfort of your own computer. Whatever you've been taught to think of poetry, I challenge you to expand your views (from negative to positive, from positive to even more positive) by taking advantage of some of these:

• Academy of American Poets -- Have a poem e-mailed to you daily this month! Print out poems to keep in your pocket and discover--or leave for others--throughout the day! Use the poetry map to find poets from your region and read their work! Take advantage of their "30 Ways to Celebrate," including taking a poem out to lunch! Lots of creative ways to infuse a little more poetry into your life.
• Poem-a-Day -- Sign up to receive a poem in your e-mail inbox each day this month from Random House, whose selections include both current and classic poetry.
• Poetry 180 -- This site offers enough poems for the typical American high schooler to read one per day throughout the school year (or for his/her English teacher to have him/her do so). There's a good variety of accessible but thought-provoking poems that you're likely to enjoy even if you're out of high school.
• Poetry Daily -- Enjoy contemporary poetry from a variety of new books, magazines, and journals.

There--that's a good start. Read some poems and then leave a comment below about what you're reading and how you're responding to it. Come back and leave comments often throughout this month. Don't delay now--read! (And enjoy!)