by Lauren Haslett

Created on: June 01, 2008

Does poetry matter in the 21st century?

Many things in our "civilized" human world have changed in the last few hundred years, including the incredible reverence for poetry and the poets who write it. Other forms of self-expression and entertainment have taken precedence in our modern culture, where the simpler and easier something is to understand, the more quickly it can be absorbed and taken in, the higher the value that is placed upon it. But even in this life, this life that seems to consist mainly of emails and texts and sound bytes and news clips, poetry has its place, and it is a more important one than ever.

Poetry has, for centuries past, been one of the highest forms of artistry, combining sometimes strict form and intellectual exercise with beauty, emotion, and powerful meaning. In addition to all of this, poetry has also played an intensely important role in societies around the world, provoking the discussion of ideas, instigating and becoming the anthems for social movements and change, and preserving the myths and stories of all kinds of peoples. And though the strength of this tradition is fading today, there are pieces of this ancient purpose that cannot ever be diminished by any new technology or mode of expression. Poetry may change, it may go underground and relinquish its place as an idol for the masses in our time, but it will never die, because our need to use language to express our thoughts and feelings, to connect with the world within ourselves and outside ourselves will never die poetry will adapt.

Literature, and poetry in particular, has often been the voice of the social outcasts, the political dissidents, and those who just didn't quite "fit in" with mainstream society and the views it holds, and this is truer today than ever. Poetry may not have the widespread appeal to the masses that it once did, but the tradition of reading and writing poetry still exists, and the oral tradition of poetry does as well, though in many cases it has been relegated to dingy cafes and city street corners, in great contrast to the grand courts of its golden age. Instead of competitive displays of wit for kings or of beauty and romance to lovers, or famous battle stories passed through the generations, we now have something called "the slam," a phenomenon that has spread across the country over the past couple of decades to coffeehouses and college campuses everywhere. We have hip hop and performance art, forms that often combine poetic verse with

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