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Do We Need Poetry in the 21st Century?

by Preston Felix



Poetry has been present in our everyday lives for many years. It has always been present in our education system and teachers simply love to teach their students through it. The different styles and eras of poetry have something special to offer to those who read them and they can be a calming and even educational way to pass the time.

For those who aren’t good with words, poetry can be a great form of self-expression without boundaries. Whether you wish to follow a particular way of writing or you simply want to write your thoughts and worries down, poetry can help give you a way to do just that. Here are some reasons why poetry is important, even in the 21st century.

Understanding the world around us

Probably one of the most important reasons why poetry is very much needed in today’s society is because it can help us understand and appreciate the world around us. As poetry can be a way for people to express their feelings, thoughts, and ideas, it can help reflect moments of their everyday lives and different backgrounds and allow other people who read these poems get to know a little more about their way of living.

When you turn on the TV or look at news online, the very first thing you will hear about is a war or a disaster somewhere around the world. What you might often not think about is that behind this disaster there are people who have to live under these conditions. The words of these people can often be found in the form of poems and can help them let go of all the negative emotions and difficulties they are experiencing on a daily basis.

The 21st Century seems to be full of hatred and differences and poetry could really offer a way for people to connect with one another and understand their individual struggles. It can help shed light to difficult and dark situations and make people understand how others are dealing with difficult and even violent situations, from every part of the world.

It allows people to be more vulnerable

If poetry can help this world in one way, it is by helping to make people more vulnerable. Just because there are no filters when it comes to writing a poem, the poet can open up their hearts and truly speak without having to think about how others will perceive their feelings. This can be a getaway for those who need to escape from difficult everyday situations and it can help them try to gain strength and confidence.

On the other hand, poetry can also affect the people who read those poems. Whether a person has hate in their hearts or is simply not keen on expressing their feelings, poetry can help them come in contact with their more emotional side and start expressing themselves better. We live in a day and time where people tend to keep to themselves and don’t like to open up to others, so poetry might just be the missing link in making that change.

A great exercise for those who wish to better understand themselves and get in touch with their more vulnerable sides is to start writing down their feelings and emotions and create small poems based on their everyday experiences. You can also try to capture feelings that poems awaken in you by writing short poetry analysis essays. These journaling practices will not only help you to understand your feelings and cope with stress and negative emotions but will make you a better writer and poet as well.

It can help students learn in a more creative environment

Teachers from all around the world have been using poetry as a way to get their students to express their feelings better and to also start searching for and understanding the deeper meaning in whatever they read. Poems offer the reader a little window into the poet’s soul and past experiences and a student has a lot to learn from this form of self-expression.

Poetry can allow the student and the teacher to come closer to one another and it can truly be a powerful instructional tool which can help the student learn, grow and get in better touch with themselves and with the world around them. Not only will the student become more expressive and knowledgeable but they will also have more respect for other forms of art.

The great thing about poetry is that it doesn’t have to be recent in order for it to be relevant. The struggles people are going through will always have similarities and that can just make the poems a lot easier to comprehend for every student. This fact can also very well help them become a lot more interested in many different subjects and offer themselves a new perspective when it comes to studying.

The importance of poetry is great

Poetry is a form of art and entertainment not only for the person who writes the poems but also for those who read them. There are many benefits in poetry and it can truly help transform our world and make it a more understanding and loving place.

In a time where there are seemingly so many differences between people, poetry can shed a light on the problems and show just how similar we all are on the inside. Not only can it be a great choice for every person of every age, but it can also help people better understand themselves better and grow into better and more conscious human beings.



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