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AesopRock. Some of his more involved songs read as much as poetry as anything I've encountered in the past. (ZZZ top provides a good example and is a personal

AesopRock. Some of his more involved songs read as much as poetry as anything I've encountered in the past. (ZZZ top provides a good example and is a personal favorite for me.) But what do you describe as "genuine poetry"? Some sort of meter usage, some form of writing, structure? I think that creates an artificial divide, and prefer instead to just see many forms of storytelling through organized words, a continuum of various implementations of poetry/prose.

Nadya 11y ago
Zero Dark Thirty is a good example of what I would consider poetry by Aesop. http://genius.com/Aesop-rock-zero-dark-thirty-lyrics http://genius.com/Aesop-rock-zero-dark-thirty-lyrics
JadeNB 11y ago
> But what do you describe as "genuine poetry"? Some sort of meter usage, some form of writing, structure? I don't have a good definition, just an "I know it when I see it" sort of thing. > I think that creates an artificial divide, and prefer instead to just see many forms of storytelling through organized words, a continuum of various implementations of poetry/prose. I think that I would agree with the point that I thought tjradcliffe (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9707954 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9707954) was making upthread. Informally, a 'genuine' poem to me is a way of communicating a story, an experience, or an emotion in a way that would be less effective if translated into prose. I don't know if this sort of definition by opposition is worthwhile; and, in fact, as I state it this way, I wonder if maybe I am arguing against my original position that not much music is poetry.
- vacri 11y ago
  > I don't have a good definition, just an "I know it when I see it" sort of thing. Without a decent definition, no-one can hope to satisfy "as opposed simply to lyrics using poetic structures, like rhythm and rhyme". Basically you're asking people to prove your personal preferences. 'What is the difference between poetry and lyrics' is an age-old difficult question, with an easy answer for those who don't think there's a difference, and difficult searching for subtle differentiation for those who do. The link below is a good write-up of many of the issues, with the author thinking there is a difference, and that is only that lyrics don't work 'as well' without their attendant music (but which means we should to define what 'as well' means... and exceptions can always be found). http://bostonreview.net/forum/poetry-brink/difference-between-poetry-and-song-lyrics http://bostonreview.net/forum/poetry-brink/difference-betwee... Ultimately, if differentiation is that difficult a question, the two entities aren't all that qualitatively different, in my opinion.
- ssaassaa 11y ago
  > I don't have a good definition, just an "I know it when I see it" sort of thing. Does this meet your definition? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K81UGHwhWaw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K81UGHwhWaw

Nadya 11y ago

Zero Dark Thirty is a good example of what I would consider poetry by Aesop. http://genius.com/Aesop-rock-zero-dark-thirty-lyrics http://genius.com/Aesop-rock-zero-dark-thirty-lyrics

JadeNB 11y ago

> But what do you describe as "genuine poetry"? Some sort of meter usage, some form of writing, structure? I don't have a good definition, just an "I know it when I see it" sort of thing. > I think that creates an artificial divide, and prefer instead to just see many forms of storytelling through organized words, a continuum of various implementations of poetry/prose. I think that I would agree with the point that I thought tjradcliffe (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9707954 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9707954) was making upthread. Informally, a 'genuine' poem to me is a way of communicating a story, an experience, or an emotion in a way that would be less effective if translated into prose. I don't know if this sort of definition by opposition is worthwhile; and, in fact, as I state it this way, I wonder if maybe I am arguing against my original position that not much music is poetry.

vacri 11y ago
> I don't have a good definition, just an "I know it when I see it" sort of thing. Without a decent definition, no-one can hope to satisfy "as opposed simply to lyrics using poetic structures, like rhythm and rhyme". Basically you're asking people to prove your personal preferences. 'What is the difference between poetry and lyrics' is an age-old difficult question, with an easy answer for those who don't think there's a difference, and difficult searching for subtle differentiation for those who do. The link below is a good write-up of many of the issues, with the author thinking there is a difference, and that is only that lyrics don't work 'as well' without their attendant music (but which means we should to define what 'as well' means... and exceptions can always be found). http://bostonreview.net/forum/poetry-brink/difference-between-poetry-and-song-lyrics http://bostonreview.net/forum/poetry-brink/difference-betwee... Ultimately, if differentiation is that difficult a question, the two entities aren't all that qualitatively different, in my opinion.
ssaassaa 11y ago
> I don't have a good definition, just an "I know it when I see it" sort of thing. Does this meet your definition? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K81UGHwhWaw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K81UGHwhWaw