What makes a poem … a poem? - Melissa Kovacs

TED-Ed

20 Mar 201705:20

Summary

TLDRIn 1975, Muhammad Ali's two-word poem 'Me, we' sparked a debate on what constitutes a poem. This script explores the nature of poetry, highlighting its musical qualities, condensed language, and emotional intensity. It delves into the evolution of poetry, from its rhythmic roots to modern forms like prose poems and rap. The script also touches on the blurred lines between poetry, prose, song, and visual art, emphasizing the human element in poetry that AI has yet to replicate.

Takeaways

🥊 Muhammad Ali is known for his boxing prowess and a brief, impactful poem 'Me, we.'
🎓 Ali's poem was delivered at Harvard's 1975 graduation, emphasizing unity and friendship.
🤔 The script ponders the definition of a poem, suggesting it's not just about length but impact.
🎶 Poems are characterized by their musical qualities, achieved through rhyme, rhythm, and meter.
🌟 Poetry often uses condensed language to convey intense feelings and emotions.
🎨 Poetry can blur the lines with visual art, as seen in the works of Reinhard Döhl and Eugen Gomringer.
🎵 Lyrics of songs by artists like Paul Simon and Bob Dylan can stand alone as poetry.
📜 Prose poems challenge traditional line breaks, using vivid imagery within paragraph structures.
🌐 Poetry's essence can be found in various forms, including speeches, social media, and everyday language.
🤖 Despite advances in AI, human creativity in poetry remains distinct and is not easily replicated by machines.

Q & A

What was Muhammad Ali's shortest poem that he shared with Harvard's graduating class in 1975?
-Muhammad Ali's shortest poem is believed to be 'Me, we.' or possibly 'me, weeee', as the exact pronunciation is uncertain.
What are the three general characteristics of poetry mentioned in the script?
-Poetry generally emphasizes language's musical qualities through rhyme, rhythm, and meter; uses condensed language; and often features intense feelings.
How do the earliest poems relate to the concept of memory?
-The rhythmic patterns of the earliest poems served as a way to remember stories, even before the advent of writing.
What is the debate surrounding whether songs can be considered poems?
-While many don't regard songwriters as poets in a literary sense, lyrics from artists like Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, and Tupac Shakur often hold up even without the music, suggesting they can be considered poems.
How does rap incorporate poetic elements?
-Rap integrates poetic elements such as rhyme, rhythm, and imagery, which are inseparable from the form.
What is a prose poem and how does it differ from traditional poetry?
-A prose poem uses vivid images and wordplay but is formatted like a paragraph without line breaks, unlike traditional poetry which often has a distinct shape with line breaks.
How does the script suggest we should view poetry?
-The script suggests viewing poetry less as a form and more as a concept, recognizing its presence in various forms such as spiritual hymns, speeches, and social media.
What is the origin of the word 'poetry' and what does it signify?
-The word 'poetry' originates from the ancient Greek 'poiesis', which means to create. It signifies that poets, like craftsmen, work with the raw materials of the world to forge new understandings.
What was the outcome of the Dartmouth experiment involving robots writing poetry?
-In the Dartmouth experiment, robots were tasked with writing poetry, and judges were able to distinguish human-written sonnets from those made by machines 100% of the time.
How does the script describe the evolution of poetry and its relationship with other art forms?
-The script describes the evolution of poetry as a form that has blurred the lines with prose, song, and visual art over time, yet its essence as a creative expression remains distinct.
What is an example of how poetry can be found in unexpected places, as mentioned in the script?
-An example of poetry in an unexpected place is a tweet by journalist Joanna Smith during the 2010 Haiti earthquake, which used powerful, direct language and vivid images, akin to a haiku.

Outlines

00:00

🎭 The Essence of Poetry

This paragraph explores the nature of poetry through the lens of Muhammad Ali's shortest poem, 'Me, we.' It delves into the characteristics that define poetry, such as the emphasis on language's musical qualities through rhyme, rhythm, and meter; the use of condensed language; and the expression of intense emotions. The paragraph also touches on the evolving definitions of poetry, from its historical role in storytelling to its current forms, including visual poetry and prose poems. It raises the question of whether songs and rap lyrics can be considered poetry, citing examples from artists like Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, and Tupac Shakur. The discussion concludes with the idea that poetry is a concept that permeates various forms of expression, from traditional literary works to modern social media updates, and that its essence lies in the creation of new understandings and commentary on the human experience.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Poetry

Poetry is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meanings in addition to, or in place of, the prosaic ostensible meaning. In the video, poetry is explored as a form of expression that challenges simple definitions and encompasses various characteristics such as musical qualities, condensed language, and intense feelings. The video discusses how poetry has evolved and how its boundaries with prose, song, and visual art have become blurred, yet it remains a unique human creation.

💡Rhythm

Rhythm in poetry refers to the pattern of sounds, particularly the arrangement of stressed and unstressed syllables, which gives the poem its musical quality. The video mentions how poems like Shakespeare's sonnets and the Sanskrit Vedas achieve their musicality through rhythm, which is a key characteristic that distinguishes poetry from other forms of writing.

💡Meter

Meter is the rhythmic structure of a poem, established by the number of syllables and the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line. It is a technical aspect of poetry that contributes to its musicality. The script uses meter as an example of how poets use language to create a specific rhythmic pattern, which is a defining feature of poetic language.

💡Condensed Language

Condensed language in poetry refers to the use of compact, dense, and often metaphorical language to convey complex ideas or emotions with a minimum of words. The video script describes poetry as 'like literature with all the water wrung out of it,' suggesting that poets aim to express profound thoughts and feelings in the most concise way possible.

💡Line Breaks

Line breaks in poetry are the pauses or divisions between lines of a poem. They are used to create rhythm, emphasize certain words or ideas, and guide the reader's eye and ear. The video script discusses how line breaks help readers navigate the rhythms of a poem and how their absence in prose poetry challenges the traditional shape of poetry.

💡Prose Poem

A prose poem is a form of poetry that, despite its use of the visual appearance of prose (i.e., no line breaks), still employs poetic techniques such as vivid imagery and wordplay. The video script uses the prose poem as an example to illustrate how poetry can be recognized not just by its form but also by its concept and the poetic nature of its language.

💡Visual Art

Visual art in the context of the video refers to the visual nature of some poetry, where the arrangement of words on the page can be as important as the words themselves. The video mentions how some poems, like those by E.E. Cummings, use visual elements to amplify the emotional impact of the text, blurring the lines between poetry and visual art.

💡Rap

Rap is a form of music that incorporates poetic elements such as rhyme, rhythm, and imagery. The video script highlights rap as a genre where the poetic and musical elements are inseparable, and it uses a lyric from the Notorious B.I.G. to demonstrate how rap can be considered a form of poetry due to its use of vivid imagery and rhythmic language.

💡Unity and Friendship

Unity and friendship are themes that the video associates with the message Muhammad Ali delivered at Harvard in 1975. His short poem 'Me, we' encapsulates these themes, suggesting a shift from individual focus to collective identity. The video uses this example to illustrate how poetry can convey powerful messages and themes in a concise form.

💡Poiesis

Poiesis is the ancient Greek word from which the term 'poetry' is derived, meaning 'to create.' The video script explains that poets, like craftsmen, work with the raw materials of the world to create new understandings and comment on the human condition. This concept is used to emphasize the creative and expressive nature of poetry as a form of art.

💡Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the development of computer systems to perform tasks that typically require human intelligence. The video script discusses an experiment where robots were asked to create poetry, and how they were unable to replicate the human touch in poetry, suggesting that poetry remains a uniquely human form of expression that AI has not yet been able to fully master.

Highlights

Muhammad Ali captivated Harvard's graduating class in 1975 with his message of unity and friendship.

Ali's shortest poem, 'Me, we.', or possibly 'me, weeee', is considered the shortest poem ever.

The audience at Harvard wanted more from Ali, specifically a poem, after his speech.

Poets have struggled to define what makes a poem a poem, often using metaphors.

Poems generally emphasize language's musical qualities through rhyme, rhythm, and meter.

Poems use condensed language, often described as literature with all the water wrung out.

Poetry often features intense feelings, as seen in the works of Rumi and Pablo Neruda.

Poetry challenges simple definitions and has evolved over time.

Early poems used rhythmic patterns as a way to remember stories before writing was invented.

Reinhard Döhl's “Apfel” and Eugen Gomringer's "silencio" blur the line between visual art and poetry.

E.E. Cummings wrote poems where the shape was as important as the words, amplifying the emotional impact.

The debate on whether songs are poems, with lyrics from artists like Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, and Tupac Shakur often holding up without music.

In rap, elements like rhyme, rhythm, and imagery are inseparable from the form.

The Notorious B.I.G.'s lyric is used as an example of how rap can be poetic.

Poetry's shape, including line breaks, helps readers navigate the rhythms of a poem.

Prose poems use vivid images and wordplay but are formatted like paragraphs, challenging the traditional form of poetry.

Poetry can be found in surprising places like social media, as seen in Joanna Smith's tweets from the 2010 Haiti earthquake.

Haiku, the ancient Japanese poetic form, is compared to the powerful, direct language used by Joanna Smith.

The word 'poetry' comes from the ancient Greek 'poiesis', meaning to create, emphasizing the creative process of poets.

Dartmouth researchers tested the ability of robots to pen poetry, finding them distinguishable from human-made poetry.