Friday Poetry: The Social Roles of Poetry: Pleasure, Experiences, and Emotions

By Saheed Sunday

Poetry, akin to other literary genres, has seen diverse definitions from different poets. William Wordsworth believes it is "imaginative expression of strong feeling," Andrew Badley sees it as a "succession of experiences – sounds, images, thoughts, emotions," and Samuel Taylor Coleridge deems it a "communication of pleasure." Niyi Osundare's definition is pivotal, as he emphasizes poetry's role in transparently conveying human expression and societal realities. These definitions underscore poetry's distinct purposes: expressing feelings, conveying experiences, communicating pleasure, and grasping reality. This exploration delves into poetry's societal roles through communication of pleasure, experiences, and emotions.

It's worth noting that every poem [meeting TS Eliot's greatness criterion] must communicate. This communicative aspect splits into two: pleasure and experiences. Eliot's notion of poetry's essential social function to offer pleasure raises questions: 'What kind of pleasure?' Eliot's response – 'the kind of pleasure that poetry gives' – seems vague. This pleasure likely arises from poetry's succinct communication. Unlike other genres, poetry's intellectual structure demands engagement to uncover its essence, offering post-meaning pleasure as Eliot suggested.

The heart of poetry lies in communicating experiences. It is more than words; it is a channel for conveying experiences: new encounters, fresh insights, or even extraordinary revelations. Poetry inherently imparts experiential elements, not always mirroring the poet's life. For instance, Soyinka's "Abiku" conveys the enigmatic life cycle of a child destined to die and be reborn, echoing Yoruba traditions while Randall Jarrell's "Protocols" echoes Holocaust experiences.

Feelings and emotions are poetry's natural components. They emerge organically. Although, due to the various nature a poet and his poem can decide to take on, the emotions and feelings in poetry appear evidently in some poems more than others. One could, for instance, Warsan Shire's "Home" vividly portrays sentiments about 'home,' while Randall Jarrell's "The Woman at The Washington Zoo" encapsulates detachment.

Truly, a poet's ability to communicate pleasure, experiences, and express feelings and emotions reflecting societal realities underscores the profound social functions of poetry.

References:

Eliot, Thomas Stearns. "On Poetry and Poets." Faber and Faber Limited, 1957.
Adedeji, Ridwan. "Poem: Abiku by Wole Soyinka." Literature Padi, February 27, 2022. Link
Jarrell, Randall. "Protocols." Live Journal, January 27, 2017. Link
Suela, Fat. "Home by Warsan Shire." Gathering Books, July 22, 2016. Link
Jarrell, Randall. "The Woman at the Washington Zoo." Poetry Foundation. Link