Singers are the poets of today
Poetry may seem like a thing of the past, but it is still as popular as ever.
Poetry uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meanings and words to create literary art. Many poets such as William Wordsworth, William Blake, or Robert Frost are centuries old, and because the most popular poets come from the past it seems that poetry has declined in popularity. While it reigned in the world of art in the past, poetry may have moved down due to more modern forms of art reigning today.
Although popular poetry has taken on a different form in today’s day and age, poetry remains at the top like it always has been. The action of using words and aesthetics to make meaning still reigns supreme, but the popular poems are called songs and the poets are singers. If we break down the definition, songs are just poems. Song lyrics involve words placed together with aesthetic qualities. The only difference is the addition of music to complement the words. Just as many poets have their own English classes dedicated to their work, some singers have classes devoted to them as well. An example of this is the course, ENG316H5, a special topics course that focused on Taylor Swift’s work. The course treated Swift’s music like any other form of literature and analyzed its words and music to dig into its deeper meanings.
It is widely known that poets intend to tell a story or message through their poems. For example, Wordsworth’s “Surprised by Joy” tells a story of grief, Blake’s “The Tyger” discusses something terrifying, and Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” tells a story about the unknown. Like these poets, Swift has a story she’s looking to tell in her songs.
Many of Swift’s songs, such as “I Knew You Were Trouble,” tell the story of her ex-boyfriends and breakups. She is also known for other recurring themes in her music such as her response to hate and criticism in songs like “Shake it Off.” These count as storytelling in the same way that the stories of poems do. In this sense, Swift’s work proves that modern songs are just poems with music added. The core of poetry is still present in the words and storytelling.
Swift’s song “Anti-Hero” demonstrates similarity to poems with darker themes. The song discusses Swift’s struggles with lines like, “I’m the problem, it’s me,” and, “It must be exhausting always rooting for the anti-hero.” This song mirrors Wordsworth’s poem because they both discuss the narrators’ feelings of sadness. However, the addition of music to match the lyrics helps the song feel like an entirely different art form than poetry. With pop songs becoming more popular than traditional poetry, it is easy to see songs as the new modern art form. However, Swift’s music conveys similar themes and shows how songs function the same way as poetry, just with music added. The use of words, aesthetics and rhythmic elements are still present.
Staff Writer (Volume 49 & 50) — Yusuf is in his fourth year completing a double major in English and Cinema Studies and a minor in History of Religions. He first joined The Medium in 2022 when he sought to get involved in the on-campus community. He has developed strong writing skills throughout the experience and enjoys learning about new topics he wouldn’t know about otherwise. You can connect with Yusuf on LinkedIn.