Does Poetry Matter?

 
Qwo-Li Driskill performing "A Long Story Made Short." I want the pejorative "ding-donger" to become a thing.
 

The avant-guarde op-ed question this summer seems to be “is poetry relevant?” When I see such titles come up on my newsfeed, my automatic response is the always-savvy comeback: “is your face relevant?”

Once I’ve gotten that out of my system, it’s time to be a little more proactive. Not all poetry is relevant. That is true of any genre. And to quote a friend—there’s a lot of boring poems winning prizes.

For me relevant poetry is poetry that connects and expands the voices of the human community. I want a poem to open my heart and mind to human experience. I want the language to make my stomach drop. I want to find on the page the precise language to describe my own truths.

If you want to read a book to prove or remind yourself of poetry’s relevance, take a look at Qwo-Li Driskill’s Walking with Ghosts. Please buy this book. Driskill is a Cherokee, Two-Spirit, queer writer. Hir poems are a song often silenced performed with a tenderness and strength of language from the earth’s core.

Driskill manages to describe Cherokee culture, which for many might be a foreign concept, with such accessible language. Even if this is the first poetry book you ever read, I think you will get it. I think you will feel it. For poets trying to incorporate foreign languages into their poetry—this is a chance to learn from the master.

Driskill walks the line between literary poetry and spoken word—a good place to be in my opinion. I’m tired of academic musing put to rhythm. Let’s read some poetry that matters.

Can’t wait for your copy of Walking with Ghosts to show up in the mail? Check out this poetic appetizer.