A Literary Essay Example: Poetry Defense

The works of Thomas Love Peacock tends to create a perception that poetry has become valueless and redundant in this era of science and technology and that brilliant people should forego their pursuit for literary arts for more practical and useful sciences. Contrary to Thomass arguments is the fact that poetry is a piece of art, a great beauty that expresses emotional sincerity and a way of showing deep feelings with beauty and quality of imagination. It is a powerful way through which the poet delights readers by idealizing his inner feelings and own accord and displays it to his audience through words. Poets are possessors of great insights and unusual sensitivity, and they can imagine, create and assign new meanings to things making them more attractive for the readers through the simple use of words. This paper will provide a defense as to why poetry literature should not be abandoned for sciences: by critically analyzing its core usefulness and uniqueness of the functions performed by poetry.

According to (Philip and Shelley) language is an important tool that demonstrates humanitys desire for order and harmonious coexistence this, in turn, creates the beauty of unity. It is through this recognition of the beauty of unity that we get civilization. Through the divinity of poetry, civilization advances and flourishes. Shelley portrays poetry as a mirror which brings back the beauty of that which is distorted. We may want to imagine and overlook the beauty and usefulness of poetry due to the increasing desire for science and technology, but for sure poetry remains an integral part of the society (Shelley).

Poetry unveils the hidden beauty of the world we live. The nature of poetry is utilitarian since it sparks civilization by expanding and awakening the mind using a series of a detained blend of thoughts. Poetry can be considered as a bridge over the stream which connects the modern world to the ancient world (Middleton). Poetry serves to bring back critical historical dramas and occurrences of the classical period through the middle age up to the present day. Poetry is useful in preserving the culture that people take pride in and also act as the preserver of peoples ways of life. Science and technology on their own cannot serve as a constant reminder and source of this information. Therefore, poetry cannot be ignored. Poetry sympathizes with moral decay and eventually addresses the tragedy through the creation of artistic works that can restore social value (Burns).

Ethical science makes use of elements created by poetry, propounds schemes and uses them to develop examples of what is deemed civil and domestically acceptable (Pooper). Poetry does not try to make acceptable what man hates, despise or deceive but instead construes its subject more divinely that tones down what is unacceptable to acceptable. Poetry exalts the beauty of things making that which is seen as beautiful even more beautiful and adds beauty to that which is bent.

The imagination is an important instrument of moral good (Lodge). Poetry administers this to the cause through strengthening the faculty which is the organ of moral nature of a man. Poetry replenishes and enlarges imagination through new thoughts and delight of things. For a man to do good, he has to engage in imagination. He has to imagine the pleasures and the pains of his deeds. He has to also look at the pain of others as his own. That way he cannot engage in acts of animosity knowing very well that inflicting pain on another human being is an equal pain to him. Therefore, poetry is an essential tool for keeping actions by people within their limits and maintaining order. Poetry is a pronounced preacher of peace, love and preserving the dignity of humanity.

Poetry is a rich source of knowledge. We have more economic and scientific knowledge than ways in which can convert it into resourceful gains. We have more moral, political and historical knowledge that we can put it into practice. This emphasis and cultivation of mechanical art degrees have disproportioned the existence of creative faculty. It is this creative faculty that is deemed a center of imagination. Poetry enlarges the circumference of imagination and broadens a man scope of thinking making it easy for him to devise new mechanisms of doing things. The poetical faculty has two very important functions. One which is the creation of new materials through knowledge, power, and pleasure. Secondly, poetical faculty stimulates in mind the desire to reproduce, assimilate and arrange this knowledge, power, and pleasures in a good and rhythmic order (Bailey).

Poetry is the root of all systems and thoughts. It is a center of knowledge that comprehends all the science and is attributable to the creative nature of poetry. Without poetry, we cannot have science as poetry is the mother of all imaginations and creative thoughts. Poetry is different from reasoning. It is a work of the mind and not a forced will. Poetry idealizes opinions and modern forms of manners and subordinates them into imaginative and creativity that produces new knowledge and resources (Alpers).

Lastly, we can say that poetry is important as it sharpens and builds resilience in both kids and adults. Sciences and other practicable arts are important, but all they do is make students mechanical. Poetry, on the other hand, promotes social and responsive learning in both kids and adults. Poems give us new insights. They reinforce knowledge. A single phrase or stanza in a poem can help us capture a meaning we have not been able to gain in a long time, and it enriches us with new experiences. Poetry is a blood imagination and intelligence running together that creates in us the desire to see, taste and get in touch with the world (Leavis). Poetry finds ways to communicate the inexplicable and the difficult things in life such as life and death and poems are useful tools that communicate to the deepest of our parts, bring more meaning to life and makes us feel like we are trapped somewhere between a hot rock and an iceberg.

In conclusion, we can argue that poetry is as important as science is; probably even more important than science since it is the root of all science. Abandoning poetry arts for more practical and sciences would create a lifeless society. As we see those people lost in science and technology barely have no inner meaning that they can attach to life. Poetry enhances literacy levels in the society, builds the community as a whole and even more importantly fosters emotional resilience. It reveals the reality and voices of thoughts. It also expresses feelings of frustration, anger, distress, and misery through penning down ones emotions at the moment. A society without a poetic faculty is a society of hollowness. It is an incomplete society. We need poetry.

Works Cited

Alpers, Paul J. Poetry of the Faerie Queene: Poems and a Defense Rhyme. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015.

Bailey, Suzanne. The Poet's Mind: The Psychology of Victorian Poetry. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012.

Burns, Timothy. W. "Philosophy and Poetry." American Political Science Review 109.2 (2015): 326-338.

Leavis, F.R. New Beginnings in English Poetry. 2015.

Lodge, R.C. Plato's Theory of Ethics: The Moral Criterion and the Highest Good. 2014.

Middleton, Peter. Physics Envy: American Poetry and Science in the Cold War and After. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2015.

Pooper, K. Conjectures, and Refutations: The growth of Scientific Knowledge. England, 2014.

Shelley, Percy. A Defense of Poetry and Other Essays. 2010.

Shelley, Percy and Sidney Philip. An Apology for Poetry. 2010.