Andrey's questions about poems (split from the intro thread)

[AndreyGaganov]

Metaphors are not exclusive to poetry. They are all around you, from the language employed by journalists and advertisers to the aphorisms of bumper stickers. They are written, verbal, visual - they are shortcuts to meaning, avoiding the need for longwinded explanations.

Well, who is to say what is long-winded? I for one would certainly care for some expansion on what 'the State' is and what the 'hunching in the belly' means. (Not that you have to do it now. After the poet has convinced me that the poem has to be one with research and the prosaic addendum he wrote for it, I got the gist of it in its entirety.)

I suppose it's more of a matter of how loaded with shortcuts your poem is and how you choose or craft your metaphors. This altogether makes poetry for me more difficult to read and understand. Question: why? Couldn't the author fulfill his objective in a way that would make more sense? Couldn't he get his message across more effectively? (These are just questions for understanding; I'm trying not to make an argument of it.)

You are assuming that there is a singular message being conveyed.

Yeah, I was just being general. It could be plural. The question could be rephrased as: "Couldn't he get his message(s) across more effectively?"