A poem describing poetry

Eternal Poetry

How to grow old with grace and firmness
Is the kind of eternal problem that poetry
Is best reserved for, unaging poetry
That isn't afraid of saying what time will do
To our taste and talents, our angles of observation.
As for a local problem mentioned in passing
In this morning's news, like the cut in food stamps,
It's handled more effectively in an essay
With graphs and numbers. A poem's no proper place
To dwell on the prison reforms my friend proposes
Based on his twenty-year stint inside the walls.
In an essay there's room to go into details
So the State of New York can solve the problem
Once and for all and turn to issues more lasting.
Facing old age, the theme I'm developing here,
Will still be an issue when the failure of prisons
Interests only historians of our backward era.
A poem's the thing for grappling with the question
Whether it's best to disdain old age as a pest
Or respect it as a might army or welcome it
As a guest with a ton of baggage. Three options
That health-care professionals might deem too harsh
To appear in their journals. I wish they would help
My friend publish his essay on prison reform,
His practical plan to inspire the inmates
By cutting their minimum sentences if they master a trade
So they won't return, as is likely now, in a year or two.
The odds are long against getting the ear of the governor
But not impossible if he's only a year from retirement
And old age prompts him to earn a paragraph
In the history of reform. The bill might squeak through
If the Assembly decides it hasn't the wherewithal
To keep the old prisons in decent repair
Let alone build new ones. No money now
To pay the prison inspector what he deserves
As he makes his rounds in his battered pickup.
An old man shaking his head in disgust
As the roof leaks, peeling plaster, and rusty plumbing
That might have been avoided with a little foresight
And therefore don't deserve a place in a poem.
And to think he's been at it for thirty years
Despite his vow, after a month on the job,
To be out of it at the latest by Christmas.
Nobody's eager to wear his shoes
Unless we count the people inside the walls
Whose envy of those growing old outside
Is a constant always to be relied on,
And so can enter a poem at any time.


This is an odd poem--mostly because it seeks to describe what poetry should and should not be used for...by writing a poem about it. Dennis writes that poetry should be used for different kinds of "eternal problems." Is he implying that poetry should not be used for issues that are temporary? Certainly, poetry is most often used for describing and discussing abstract issues: love, death, life, passion, pain, etc. But, I think that poetry can be used to describe more temporary issues. Perhaps, however, even a temporary issue--like describing a sickness--could be viewed in terms of its "eternal" themes. I think that the line about "angles of observation" is a more accurate portrayal of poetry. The purpose of poetry is to take either mundane things and describe them as extraordinary, or, conversely, take difficult, abstract concepts and describe them in terms of everyday objects. That, I think, is what distinguishes poetry from prose.

Dennis' observation that "this morning's news" is handled more effectively in an essay with "graphs and numbers" is true. An article will convey the most news if the information can be related in prose. That said, many poems have a political angle, so it's not accurate to say that a poet must divorce current events and poetry completely.

Midway through the poem, the speaker states that "a poem's the thing for grappling with the question / Whether it's best to disdain old age as a pest / Or respect it as a mighty army." Right after these lines, the speaker enters into a long segment of discussing prison reform. This seemed completely contrary to his earlier assertion that "a poem's no proper place / To dwell on the prison reform." Why did Dennis make this statement...and then decide to discuss prison reform at length? Is he demonstrating that a poem about prison reform doesn't really make a very good poem?

The syntax and diction of the body of the poem contrast with the title. "Eternal Poetry" creates an image of a poem with abstract ideas and an erudite vocabulary. The text of the poem, however, uses simple, clear syntax and diction that are prose-like. Especially in the later half of the poem, it would be impossible to distinguish it from prose if read aloud. I do agree with Dennis here: if you are going to write a poem about an issue that would be found most often in prose form, then the poet should take pains to make sure that the poetry can be clearly marked as poetry. Lines like "I wish they would help / My friend publish his essay on prison reform" have few poetic qualities, and I think should belong in prose. Even the structure of this poem, which is not broken into stanzas, is similar to prose.

Now a few questions for you all to consider: Do you think that a poem is the best place to discuss what makes a good or bad poem? Are there certain topics that are unsuited for poetry? Does poetry need to rely on the abstract?