Is poetry, poverty without the V

Convener(s): Ann Wilson

Participants: Matilda, Martin

Sometimes I flick V back into my poetry,

It needs its roots, its voice and its victim mentality.

I sat with Venus for a while. I wondered if I’d asked the wrong question.  Maybe I could’ve asked about keeping the spit in Live Lit. Martin came over and we talked about disenfranchised voices – and who they are.  I talked about the schools that I’d worked with in Cumbria.  On National Poetry Day – a teacher told me some of the kids don’t have outdoor coats so if it was raining they wouldn’t have come. Matilda asked about why I asked the question.  I talked about the different poets I work with. We talked about how poetry can be seen as elitist.  We talked about perceptions of different styles.  People in rural areas can think rapping and free styling is urban and not for them etc.  I asked Matilda if the word poetry can put people off.  We agreed that maybe it did because of assumptions and perceptions of it.  We agreed there are lots of different styles like there are different styles of theatre and while it’s great to get all the different styles together sometimes they don’t complement each other.  In an ideal world people would be brought together by their shared love of language.

 

Summary of discussion, conclusions and/or recommendations:

It’s an accessible art form.

Its immediacy is appealing.

It’s about communicating.

It’s all about the word.