Poetry is an entirely different language by itself; to absorb its sophistication obligates more than a well understanding of comprehension or literature; but an artistic perspective of the world’s precincts and its perpetual influences. As the poet Wallace Stevenson boldly stated, “a poet looks at the world the way a man looks at a woman”. To compose poetry requires the mastery of adjective use and an ability to illustrate strong poetic images that appeal all the reader’s senses.
Illustrating Poetic Imagery
Poetic imagery is a combination of words used to appeal one or multiple senses. A poem depends heavily on displaying imagery; for example: the shade of an autumn-born rose — when reading that particular sentence, the reader pictures a golden rose and thinks about its scent or feel. This is how a poet communicates with their reader; rather than writing in a direct form to describe certain feelings, a poet writes in an indirect form to illustrate what they believe should be felt. This is precisely why most poems require more focused insight rather than a rhetoric or other literary writing.
The Use of Adjectives
Adjective use is imperative to manifesting a poetic image — without adjectives, poetic works will seem both inadequate and vague. Using adjectives imparts the reader a proper understanding of the overall message or intention, and also allows the writer to embody more artistic qualities — which is strictly what the reader looks for in poetry. Consider the works of Shakespeare, Spenser, Poe — each of their poems or sonnets have distinctive and well-placed adjectives that make an ordinary mediocre poem into a vivid extraordinary masterpiece.
Examples:
With Adjective Use:
I stared upon a shaded horizon
And my quivering eyes became
Invited by its sudden fraudulent gaze —
It hungered for my weakening resolve,
Desiring my relentless diligence
Without Adjective Use:
I stared upon a horizon
And my eyes became
Invited by its gaze—
It hungered for my resolve,
Desiring my diligence
The words clearly spoke for themselves — the use of adjectives conclusively changed the entire tension and mood of the poem. The second example seemed vacant and without much temperament; however, the initial example motivated many diversified sensations and appropriately presented significant poetic imagery.
Taking Upon a Perspective
When developing a poem, poets need to decide the narrator‘s perspective — otherwise the poem would seem out of place. Determining whether you are writing as a third or first person will not just suffice; there has to be a comprehensive understanding of exactly who the narrator is and what his or her overall intentions are — meaning that the writer needs to develop a character for the poetry itself. Even when taking upon a self-perspective, poets still need to make overall connotation clear. The following questions should be considered when developing a poetic work:
- Who is the narrator?
- Who or what is the narrator talking about?
- How does the narrator feel about the person or subject?
- What sort of environment is the poem taking place?
- What particular sense is the narrator trying to appeal?
- What is the overall message as a theme?
The responses for those questions are imperative for developing reputable poetry; without understanding the role of the narrator or the overall significance of the poem, the poetry will seem to be nothing more than a few words mingled together.
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