What Is Poetry? 

Welcome to the world of poetry! I’ve loved poetry my whole life, love to teach it, and I still get excited when someone discovers what makes rhyme so powerful. Whether you’re completely new to poetry or looking to deepen your understanding, there’s always something surprising waiting in the next line.

What Is Poetry? (It’s Complicated, But in a wonderful way)

Here’s the thing about defining poetry—it’s like trying to catch mist. Just when you think you’ve got it figured out, some brand-new poet comes along and rewrites the rules, and their poetry is fresh new and just right.

Poetry changes ordinary language into something that feels different. Unlike prose, poetry uses rhythm, meter, rhyme, imagery, and carefully chosen words to create emotional impact. But honestly? Some of the best poems I know don’t rhyme at all, and others barely follow any traditional structure.

Take this line from Maya Angelou: “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” That’s poetry. It’s not about fancy rhyme schemes—it’s about language that makes you stop and think. 

Poetry has this sneaky way of showing up everywhere:

• Song lyrics that get stuck in your head for weeks (thanks, Baby Shark)
• Instagram captions that make you double-tap immediately
• Advertising slogans that you remember years later
• Text messages where someone perfectly captures a mood

I’ve seen adults argue that Kendrick Lamar’s “Alright” isn’t “real poetry” because it’s rap. Then we analyze the imagery, the internal rhyme, the social commentary—and suddenly they realize poetry isn’t confined to dusty textbooks. It’s alive, it’s everywhere, and it’s constantly evolving.

The beauty of poetry lies in its refusal to be pinned down to one single format. It can be a 17-syllable haiku or Lin-Manuel Miranda’s rapid-fire verses in Hamilton. What matters isn’t following some ancient rulebook—it’s using language to create an experience that sticks with people. I love both “I wandered lonely as a cloud” and the newest slam poetry. 

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Why Write Poetry? 

Why do people write poetry, and in fact struggle and work for years to create just the right combination of letter? It’s certainly not for the money, but when you hit the right combination, the sweet spot, that fierce burn you know you have the right words to express the situation in its totality. I always thought Heinlein’s word grok was the perfect word to describe the experience of life distilled into words either poem or prose, the entire is encapsulated into, distilled into the small world of a poem.

It’s Therapy, But Make It Art

Writing poetry forces you to dig deeper than “I’m sad” or “I’m happy.” You have to ask: what kind of sad? Is it grey, heavy sadness, or the sharp, hard sadness? Poetry makes you get specific about emotions you might otherwise ignore.

Poetry help people through:

• Grief that feels too big for regular words
• Joy so intense it demands celebration
• Anger that needs shape and structure to become constructive
• Love that makes you want to reinvent language entirely

But here’s what surprised me the last few years. Poetry also makes you a better communicator in general. When you practice finding the perfect word for a feeling, you get better at expressing yourself in emails, conversations, and even arguments with your partner. Once you know how to whittle down and examine your thoughts on paper, expressing them orally comes easier. Power spreads out.

Connection in a Disconnected World

When Amanda Gorman delivered “The Hill We Climb” at Biden’s inauguration, the entire world watched a 22-year-old poet command a global stage. Poetry suddenly felt urgent and necessary again. That’s the power of verse—it can make the political personal and the personal universal.

People write poetry to:

• Preserve moments that feel too important to lose
• Make sense of chaos when the world feels overwhelming
• Give voice to experiences that don’t get enough attention
• Build community with others who understand your perspective
• Play with language because words are endlessly fascinating

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Poetry Through History: From Campfires to TikTok 

Poetry is old. Ancient old. We’re talking pre-writing, sitting-around-the-fire-telling-stories old. But here’s what’s wild, it’s also having its biggest renaissance since the Beat poets dominated coffee shops in the 1960s.

Ancient Stuff That Still Slaps

Before there was Netflix, before books, before even writing, humans were creating poetry around fires. The “Iliad” and “Odyssey”? Those weren’t written down for centuries. People memorized thousands of lines because the rhythm and repetition made it possible.

Different cultures have a diversity of style:

• Japanese haiku mastered saying everything in almost nothing
• Persian ghazals turned heartbreak into an art form
• Celtic ballads created the first storytelling podcasts (but with harps)
• Sanskrit poetry got so complex it needed its own instruction manual

Fun fact: most of what we know about ancient cultures comes from their poetry. Turns out, when civilizations collapse, the poems survive.

Poetry Kept Evolving 

Medieval times: Wandering minstrels and bards were the equivalent of the local news, spreading gossip, political news and entertainment through songs.

Renaissance: Shakespeare happened.

Romantic era: Poets like William Wordsworth said, “nature is amazing and feelings matter,” which was apparently revolutionary thinking. They also invented the tortured artist stereotype.

Modern period: Poets got rebellious and said, “forget your rules, we’re doing whatever we want.” T.S. Eliot wrote “The Waste Land,” which was basically the poetic equivalent of jazz—everyone pretended to understand it.

Digital Age Poetry Is Everywhere

Here’s where it gets interesting. Poetry didn’t die with the internet—it exploded. Instagram poets like Atticus and R.M. Drake have millions of followers. TikTok poetry goes viral daily. Spoken word artists fill theaters and stream performances to global audiences. My personal favorite is #vss365

Modern poetry thrives in:

• Button Poetry videos that rack up millions of views
• Poetry Twitter where people craft perfect verses in 280 characters
• Substack newsletters from poets building direct relationships with readers
• Poetry slams that blend competition with artistic expression
• Collaborative projects where multiple poets respond to current events

The democratization of poetry means anyone can share their work instantly. It also means there’s a lot of bad poetry floating around. But honestly? I’d rather have too much poetry than too little.

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Poetry and the Arts: When Words Start Collaborating

Music: Poetry’s Favorite Dance Partner

Every song you’ve ever loved started as poetry. Bob Dylan won a Nobel Prize for his lyrics, which made traditional poets lose their minds. “That’s not real poetry!” they said. Meanwhile, Dylan was laughing all the way to Stockholm.

Hip-hop proved that poetry could be political, personal, and profitable. When Kendrick Lamar won a Pulitzer for “DAMN,” it wasn’t just recognition for rap—it was acknowledgment that poetry lives wherever language gets creative.

Musical poetry includes:

• Folk traditions that preserved stories before literacy was common
• Opera (which is basically dramatic poetry with costumes)
• Singer-songwriter movements from Joni Mitchell to Phoebe Bridgers
• Hip-hop culture that made wordplay a competitive sport

Visual Arts: Making Poetry You Can See

Concrete poetry arranges words into shapes and patterns. It sounds gimmicky until you see something like John Hollander’s “Swan and Shadow”—a poem about a swan that’s literally shaped like a swan reflecting on water. Your brain explodes a little.

Artists collaborate with poets all the time. Jenny Holzer puts poetry on billboards and buildings. David Wojnarowicz combined photography with fierce, political verse. These projects prove that poetry doesn’t need to stay quietly on the page.

Performance: Poetry Gets Loud

Poetry slams are competitive poetry, which sounds like an oxymoron but absolutely works. Watching someone perform a piece they’ve crafted specifically for the stage is electric. The audience becomes part of the poem through their responses.

Sarah Kay’s TED talk about spoken word has over 8 million views. That’s more than most rock concerts. People are hungry for authentic expression, and spoken word delivers it with both vulnerability and power.

Performance poetry happens in:

• Traditional readings (which can be surprisingly intimate)
• Slam competitions (poetry meets athletic competition)
• Storytelling events (poetry’s narrative cousins)
• Theater productions (where poets collaborate with directors and actors)

Community Building: Poetry Brings People Together

Put people in a room with paper and pens, ask them to write about what matters to them, and suddenly strangers are sharing their deepest truths.

Poetry therapy isn’t new-age nonsense—it’s a legitimate practice that helps people process trauma, build confidence, and connect with others. Writing groups create communities where people support each other through both craft and life challenges.

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Start Your Poetry Journey (But Don’t Expect It to Be Clean)

Look, I could keep talking about poetry for hours (ask my family—I do), but the real magic happens when you start exploring it yourself. Poetry is wonderfully messy and personal. What speaks to you might leave someone else cold, and that’s exactly how it should be.

After a life of loving poetry, I’ve learned that everyone finds their way into it differently. Some people fall in love with Emily Dickinson’s mysterious dashes. Others discover contemporary poets like Ocean Vuong or Danez Smith and realize poetry can be urgent and necessary. Some write their first poem at 8 years old; others don’t start until they’re 80.

At GoRhyme, we believe poetry grows stronger when it’s shared—but on your terms. Our community includes everyone from nervous beginners to published poets, because we all need reminders that creativity thrives on connection and mutual support.

Where Will You Begin?

• Understanding What Makes Poetry Work 
• Finding Your Voice as a Writer 
• Learning from Poetry’s Rich History 
• Exploring Creative Collaboration 

Join us. Whether you’re curious, skeptical, excited, or intimidated, there’s space for you here. Poetry doesn’t require credentials or permission—just willingness to pay attention to language and life.

Ready to dive in? Trust your instincts and choose whatever path feels most interesting. There’s no wrong way to begin, and every voice adds something valuable to the conversation.