12-23-2011, 01:39 AM
I actually have no problem with the sentiment: "It's poetry because I say it is." Even if that isn't the only reason someone would grade something as a poem.
I think it's every writer and reader's right to classify something as poetry. We all may argue about the merits of this or that piece, but ultimately that's like a chef arguing about a patron's palate. My palate is better than it once was (to carry the comparison forward) but I've written many short pieces (a few of them I've posted here, and I think they're poems). I tend to prefer saying the most in the fewest words so I may be biased in that regard.
I think it's every writer and reader's right to classify something as poetry. We all may argue about the merits of this or that piece, but ultimately that's like a chef arguing about a patron's palate. My palate is better than it once was (to carry the comparison forward) but I've written many short pieces (a few of them I've posted here, and I think they're poems). I tend to prefer saying the most in the fewest words so I may be biased in that regard.
The secret of poetry is cruelty.--Jon Anderson