Using Nature in Poetry
Writing Poetry About Natural Objects to Express the Internal
Nov 29, 2008 Nicholas Klacsanzky
Though inspiration as a poet truly derives from within, nature can act as a tool to enhance imagination and devices used in our poetry. Poets have for ages seen nature as a reflection of the human experience. Like us, it has its seasons, a cycle of living, and many different shades of personality. Also, the purity of nature has drawn many poets to its subject and comparison. Poets in their writing usually use two devices to relate to nature: personification and analogy.
Personification of Nature
When we give nature human characteristics in poetry, we use the sanctity of natural circumstances and transcend into the irrational. Though this illogic may be seen as a hindrance in the business and commercial arena, to achieve the state of awe that poetry imposes, we have to cross the limits of the regular senses. In poetry, a frog can speak Turkish, a tree can waltz, a cloud can hear our remembrance. Whatever our imagination conjures, it is possible to describe in poetry.
The easiest way to write poetry with nature personification is to be in nature. Write in a meadow, write by a tree, write next to flower, write while looking at the sky - and reflect on its comparison. One way to break into writing if you are not receiving inspiration is to describe factually, in prose, the nature you are examining. Go into every detail, noting every part of the item. Then, if you are still not connected to your inspiration, write about that same item in prose with abstract reflections. Once you feel the lines are becoming inspired, switch these lines to a poetic form and continue as a poem.
Authors who are adept in this device are William Blake, Emily Dickinson, Rita Dove, and mostly all haiku poets. Studying textbooks on poetry is also very useful , especially those that give many examples.
Analogy of Nature
Comparison with nature in poetry makes a subject or idea more transparent and vivid. In poetry, our arms can swing like the seed being taken to its resting place by the wind, or our mind be clear as the first dew of a lotus - whatever we want to write about in a poem, we can relate that to nature. From the earliest scriptural writing to the premier contemporary poetry, analogy with nature has been used extensively. It is clear, that sometimes, it is better to describe something indirectly through nature, than through the apparent. The layers of communication usually increases with its subtleness.
As with personification, producing analogy in your poetry is alleviated by writing in nature or a natural environment. The only difference in the process of writing of an analogy as compared to personification is that the focus in not on nature first, but yourself. Initially, know what you want to write about yourself, than apply your attention to nature. In this concentration, your imagination will intuitively run.
The flavor of ones poetry is thickened and increasingly subtle with the addition of personification and analogy of nature. The ancient connection with nature and human beings have fascinated scholars and common people alike, and the same is true with poets. Though, ultimately, your power as a poet and person derives from your inner consciousness, nature can aid us to stay connected to that power.
Eyes on nature
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