Five Reasons to Get Pumped About Poetry

If you ever find yourself in a high school language arts class, and the teacher says they will be starting a unit on poetry, you can expect a chorus of groaning, with the same confidence that you would take in expecting that the sky is blue and that the sun will rise. The thing about poetry is, it looks easy, and in some regards, it is. But the other thing about poetry, is that is does take a bit of work to understand. However, the point of poetry is not to understand at all. The point, is to be moved. However, our society is one troubled with the question of “why?”, and there lies the challenge in poetry-the reason teenagers always seems to resent it.
So why do people like this stuff? It's hard to understand, and can make you cry-why even bother? Well, I'll put it simply. Here are three reasons to get pumped about poetry. 

1) It's a form of expression.
Humans feel a lot of feels, and think a lot of thinks, and to keep those all inside is such a chore. Getting those out, be it on paper, or the stage, or by means of your very own vocal chords, is a treasure to witness. It doesn't matter if it's quality. The desire to express one's self is universal, and taking in others' forms of expression is what helps to connect us all.

2) It forces you to feel.

Poetry, when well written, stirs up images and sounds to evoke some sort of emotion from the audience. Whether you enjoy being in touch with your emotions or not, it's important that you are on some level. Too often, life becomes a routine, very distant from the definition we've assigned to that word. It's important to not feel like a robot, and it's important to know the ups and downs of life, whether you experience them on the street or in the stanzas of a well written poem.

3) It sends a message.
The hidden messages in poetry that we strain our minds to seek out and understand, often send the strongest message. Say that I, a sixteen year old girl, am reading a poem about an affair. I'm not going to understand right off the bat that that's what the poem is even about. But if I were to read a poem about stress, the message would ring loud in my ears. I don't need to hear about an affair-that's not relevant in my life. Stress, however, is very relevant, and while I find it hiding in the creases of my brain, I find it hiding among the metaphors and line breaks of a poem.

4) It forces you to think
While this might be the most undesirable trait of poetry, it is certainly an admirable one. Anything that forces you to reflect, is to be both despised and desired. Despised, because our lazy human nature insists that we don't put forth the effort to go deeper than the surface. Desired, because we all need leashes for our thoughts. With nothing meaningful to ponder, our minds drift off the most absurd places, but with something like a poem there to trigger reflection, we may grow in our thought.


5) It's fun.
While poetry can be deep and thoughtful, and can also be whimsical and light, or a balance of both. It can inspire, and elate, and mourn, and sadden. It is this diversity that makes poetry so beautiful.