Do you think poetry is all about interpretation?

This is the place for readers of poetry. Discuss poetry and literary art. You can also discuss music here, including lyrics. Also, you can discuss poets themselves, in addition to poetry.
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lovelyreader21
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Do you think poetry is all about interpretation?

Post by lovelyreader21 »

I know that some people think you can judge whether poetry is "good" or "bad" by the quality of their writing and creativity. What's your opinion? Does the style or quality make or break it? Does it determine it's good or badness? Or do you think poetry is open for interpretation, and if it speaks to you, you can correctly view it as a good poem, whilst someone else may not connect to it, and therefore view it in a more negative light. I'm curious to hear your thoughts. :)
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Post by rssllue »

I think that connection is the biggest element to giving poetry meaning to the person reading/hearing it. Without that connection, it will never resonate with that person like the author intended it to when they wrote it in the first place.
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Ryan
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Post by Ryan »

Often great poetry has many resonances, therefore making it meaningful to many. There is such a thing as "good" and "bad" poetry which isn't determined by how accessible it is to a reader, but how the various components of the poem relate to each other (form and content being just one example). The way the poet uses metaphor or meter, for example, can often give a poem complexity, and even a word (used at the right moment) can alter its meaning. Like prose, it can be well written or badly written, but that's only part of it. There's no reason why bad poetry can't be enjoyable, of course, but if we're discussing technique then there is of course a standard. We also have to consider, of course, how far your interpretation of a poem is directed by "the words on the page". After all, if a poem is all interpretation then we would be able to say that Shakespeare's sonnets were about cars. That's a rather extreme example, but it'll do. But I think what it shows is that there are layers within a poem: what the poet wrote ("the words on the page" which guide you towards an understanding) and your own interpretation of the various components. Shakespeare offers us the image of wire for hair, but he expects us to understand its significance within the poem too.
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Post by LivreAmour217 »

I think that the quality of poetry is in the eye of the beholder. Reading a new poem is like listening to a new song--you either like it or you don't. However, as you go through life, your experiences may change the way that you perceive the poem, for better or worse in its favor. But then again, sometimes it's just a matter of a personal taste, regardless of age or experience. For example, I cannot stand Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass (it's rambling and pointless), and if I ever find myself liking it one day, I'm going to my doctor for a referral to a psychiatrist!!!
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Post by DarkestbeforeDawn »

Poetry is so broad and expansive, I believe that it is all about interpretation. I also think books and everything else is about interpretation. The reader makes his/her own connections about what they read and relates it to themselves.
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Post by sarai2929 »

Yes, I think poetry is largely about interpretation, but the reader's ability to interpret the poem and the poem's reach to an audience hinges on how well the poet uses language, imagery, structure, and rhyme. People have hugely different tastes on poetry, but I think most of the readers should be able to understand the poem, even if they do not like it. I don't think that a successful poem is one that only a few readers can understand--even if they adore it--while the rest of the readers are confused and see no purpose.
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Post by clairesthilaire »

I think that poetry is all about interpretation. However, I would add that I think technical skill is the foundation for connecting deeply with one's audience. It is the same, I believe, for all forms of art. First, one must have a higher than average skill utilizing their chosen medium. Once they have achieved mastery then they have the tools to creatively reach out to a variety of people. By so doing, their perceptions of the world may or may not resonate with a certain individual, but their mastery of their craft should be universally acknowledged.
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Post by pjswink »

One hundred percent interpretation....however, if the technical components are missing that direct the reader and the wording....the interpretation may be that the poem is no more than a 'word splatter'.
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Post by FreebieAddict15 »

Yes I do. Some people may interpret a poem differently than someone else because of the connection they feel with the poem. If someone feels a deep connection with the poem emotionally, they are more likely to interpret it differently than someone who doesn't feel that connection.
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Post by Lycaonia »

Poetry is essentially art, so yeah it's completely open to interpretation. I personally don't believe in "bad" poetry, (with the exception of something that's forced.)
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Post by Mrs_Zucco »

I do not think poetry is "all" about interpretation; nor do I think any one person can honestly judge whether a poem is good or bad based solely on interpretation. Putting aside the other ways of judging a poem, (whether it is a contest or has a required form standard) interpretation in it's own right, (an explanation of what one person understands something to mean that is being told to another) is not a tangible area to judge. Interpretation can easily be tainted by the interpreter's own senses or memories, his life history; thus, he may interpret a writing in a completely different way than what the author intended. Can we, then, state the poem is bad because the author's view when writing it was not the same as view the interpreter received when he read it? No. I believe that which invites us to "think" is good. All emotion and action starts with a single thought. It's my opinion that whether or not in a required, standard form; true art not only leaves the viewer or reader with a sense of what the product is in its obvious sense, but a spark of emotion, a lingering moment of thought, a question, a doubt, perhaps an awareness or invitation to peruse that subject in one's own memory for an awakening, a memory of denied, unfinished business disguised as a brilliant analogy, a tender smile, that one, single tear. In no way does this mean if the product does not provoke such an emotion it is a failure. In the form of a poem, the information has all ready been gathered, reconstructed or dusted off and put into play on the page; where it awaits the right person to read and receive. It is unique to the soul, to the character; it is not for only one, but for many kindred spirits or formed camraderies between readers and authors over decades and generations. Poetry is special in the sense that it is only what the reader wants, needs, or expects it to be. The meaning of the words are, in fact, left up for interpretation, but also, for empathy, awareness, association, or simply for rest.
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Post by DATo »

Some interpretation can be a good thing, but I dislike poetry which is so enigmatic that I have no idea what the poet is saying. It may have some important private meaning to the poet but if I don't know what it is what the hell is the point of writing it out for me to read?

Take Frost's poem, Stopping By The Woods On A Snowy Evening. People have interpreted the ending as an allusion to the narrator's impending death and all sorts of other ridiculous things. When asked what the meaning of the poem was Frost replied that it was simply what it said - stopping in the woods to watch the snow falling.

Here ... go read this "poem" by a famous "literary" personality - Gertrude Stein - and ask yourself if justice would not be served if this pretentious fraud were to be tarred and feathered and dumped into the nearest rubbish landfill.

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Post by Vermont Reviews »

Mrs_Zucco wrote:I do not think poetry is "all" about interpretation; nor do I think any one person can honestly judge whether a poem is good or bad based solely on interpretation. Putting aside the other ways of judging a poem, (whether it is a contest or has a required form standard) interpretation in it's own right, (an explanation of what one person understands something to mean that is being told to another) is not a tangible area to judge. Interpretation can easily be tainted by the interpreter's own senses or memories, his life history; thus, he may interpret a writing in a completely different way than what the author intended. Can we, then, state the poem is bad because the author's view when writing it was not the same as view the interpreter received when he read it? No. I believe that which invites us to "think" is good. All emotion and action starts with a single thought. It's my opinion that whether or not in a required, standard form; true art not only leaves the viewer or reader with a sense of what the product is in its obvious sense, but a spark of emotion, a lingering moment of thought, a question, a doubt, perhaps an awareness or invitation to peruse that subject in one's own memory for an awakening, a memory of denied, unfinished business disguised as a brilliant analogy, a tender smile, that one, single tear. In no way does this mean if the product does not provoke such an emotion it is a failure. In the form of a poem, the information has all ready been gathered, reconstructed or dusted off and put into play on the page; where it awaits the right person to read and receive. It is unique to the soul, to the character; it is not for only one, but for many kindred spirits or formed camraderies between readers and authors over decades and generations. Poetry is special in the sense that it is only what the reader wants, needs, or expects it to be. The meaning of the words are, in fact, left up for interpretation, but also, for empathy, awareness, association, or simply for rest.

I have to agree

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Post by DOOGLE1932 »

Yes. There is a link between a word and images or emotions. The nature of this link is different for each individual. It depends on his or her experience. So what one reader feels may not be the same as what another feels and may not be the same as the writer felt.
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Post by Northern Reader »

Poetry is birthed reactions that were combined from your heart and soul.
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