Poetry and prose

Poetry and prose are two terms that refer to two kinds of writing. Poetry is what we think sliced and diced and brought to the boil, expressing raw emotion and thick with umami. Prose is slow and lumpy.

When we describe something as poetic, we mean it is elegant and beautiful and often a bit sad. Bad things happen to people in poetic ways. Good things happen in poetic ways. But whenever something is poetic, it is out of the ordinary, something a little bit special.

When we describe something as prosaic, it is run of the mill and not exciting. There is no passion or form. There is no anger behind the words. There is no lust behind the words. There is no despair behind the words. It just is and the shape of it is square just like the page it is on. Prose represents orthodoxy. Wouldn’t you rather your life was a little bit more poetic?

I can think of reasons why the course of events of our history resulted in this outcome. Before writing, people remembered poems and songs because they were easier to remember, patterns and rhythms and rhymes, symbols and signs. After writing, poems were written to express emotion. What do we use prose to express? Politics and contracts.

But there are books written in prose, with beautiful prose, and how do we compliment them? They have a poetic quality. To call a prose a poem is the greatest of compliments, so it would seem.

To me it seems that this isn’t just insulting to the possibility available to prose, but also to poetry. Poetry has a stereotype, but it can be raw or rough or shit. Does that make it less of a poem? What od we say about a poem when its poetic qualities don’t fit the mould of what we’d consider poetic? Should poems even be fitting a mould to begin with? Doesn’t that all sound a bit…. prosaic?

Perhaps there is a middle ground between the poetry of poetry and the prosaicness of prose. For me, that middle ground is the short essay. This is my favourite genre of writing and i want to encourage more people to write short essays!

It is said that essay means to attempt something. This is great news, because it means that your essay can be as experimental as you want to to be without having to make it perfect. Perfect! You can try something new and if it doesn’t work, it’s no matter, you can try again.

An essay is like a poem. It is a way to like inside the brain or the heart or the soul of the essayist. Essays are usually short, and short essays are certainly so. As with poetry, the words in an essay have to be selected. Unlike with poetry, calling your work an essay avoids the scrutiny that comes with writing a poem. It’s not poetic? My friend, it’s not a poem!

Many people have written essays and published them in collections. These essays cover the subjects we most deeply care about. They have their own styles, their own affectations, their own souls and emotions.

All i’m trying to say is, prose can be poetic, and essays are an art form, and everyone should write them.

Good night~