Poetry And The Creative Mind Day takes place every year on April 19 to honor the bright minds of poetry and their craft. It is a day that shines a light on how poetry and other creative mediums have helped shape and color many lives throughout history. Whether it be songs, haikus, limericks, sonnets, elegies, or epics, poetry has the power to affect even the hardest hearts and is an example of how far human creativity and expression can stretch beyond its limits.
History of Poetry & The Creative Mind Day
Poetry as a term and medium originated centuries upon centuries ago, starting from folk songs and tales that would later be passed down and developed multiple times into the form that we know today. Through poetry and the arts, people can be open to ideas on what is possible and can shine a light on the state of society. It plays a major role in every culture because of its ability to deliver stories, ideas, viewpoints, and other valuable information in an impactful manner. Poems have been used as tools of revolution, dissidence, and love. Various regimes across history have been challenged and toppled as a result of public reawakening through poetry.Many of us are exposed to poetry from a young age, whether it be from nursery rhymes, songs, and the poems and poets that we study in school. From the playful stories of Dr. Seuss and the visceral innocence of Shel Silverstein to William Shakespeare’s hefty sonnets and the emotional political prose of Pablo Neruda, poems come in all shapes and sizes. But every one of them can carve a place in our hearts long after we first read them.However, one can say that every form of art is poetry. Song lyrics are considered poetry in itself as not only do they rhyme, but are an expression of one’s deepest emotions and thoughts. Painting and cinema are forms of visual poetry that convey meaning through their images, methods, and depth. Today, there exists an amalgam of poetic forms and structures, including haikus, sonnets, acrostics, concrete, limericks, songs, jokes, epics, and many others. Poetry And The Creative Mind Day celebrates the creative mind in general, honoring everyone who takes part in an art form, and the spirit of putting this mind into practice.
Poetry & The Creative Mind Day timeline
The world's oldest surviving piece of literature, ‘The Epic of Gilgamesh,’ is thought to be written on this date.
The world's most recognizable poet and playwright, Shakespeare, is born.
The Imagist movement gives birth to Modernist poetry, which rejects the long-winded, romantic aesthetics of the past in favor of more concise forms that we know today.
Bob Dylan becomes the first musician to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Poetry & The Creative Mind Day FAQs
How does poetry affect creativity?
Psychological studies have shown that poetry can help increase creativity levels as it helps one structure their own forms of narration, parameters, and metaphors, while also compelling writers to expand their vocabulary. Writing poetry is an exercise in cognitive stimulation and can also explain one’s emotional development in the process.
What are the forms of self-expression?
You can express yourself through a variety of means, and writing is only one of them. Forms of expression include the clothes that you wear, the music and films that you consume, the posts that you upload on social media, or even the way you talk, while self-expression merely means showing the world your identity, and you know best how to express yourself.
Who first said that "poetry is a criticism of life"?
19th-century English poet Matthew Arnold is credited with the saying. His view is that poetry’s worthiness comes from its ability to portray the facets of life, human nature, cultures, or civilizations by effectively portraying the beauty and the truths.
Poetry & The Creative Mind Day Activities
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Read your favorite poems
Poetry And The Creative Mind Day is a good time to read or re-read your favorite poems. By doing so, you can remind yourself why these writings were so impactful to you and can help reaffirm your appreciation for poetry and poets in general.
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Express yourself through your preferred artform
You don't necessarily have to write poems to celebrate Poetry And The Creative Mind Day. If your medium is an illustration, for example, then pour your thoughts and emotions onto that blank sheet of paper or canvas. The day is all about utilizing your creative mind to express yourself.
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Listen to the lyrics that speak the most to you
Music is also a form of poetry, being highly effective in rousing hearts and minds. On this day, put on some of your favorite lyrical musicians and appreciate their lyrics. Whether it be Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Patti Smith, Gil Scott-Heron, or Tom Waits, these musicians have written words that have stood the test of time due to their impacts on many over the years.
5 Random Facts About Poetry And Poets
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The longest poem in history
The Indian epic poem ‘Mahabharata’ has over 200,000 verses and 1.8 million words.
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Pablo Neruda wrote in green ink
Dissident Chilean poet Neruda preferred to write in green ink, as the color symbolizes hope for his people.
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Shel Silverstein’s world is vast and playful
Celebrated children's author and poet Silverstein won a Grammy in 1970 for penning Johnny Cash's song ‘A Boy Named Sue.’
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A poetic genius of a lady
American poet Anne Bradstreet’s 1650 book “The Tenth Muse” was the first female-written book to have been published in the West.
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Something that should be feared
‘Metrophobia’ is a term for the fear of poetry.
Why We Love Poetry & The Creative Mind Day
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It celebrates the wonders of poetry
Poetry And The Creative Mind Day celebrates an art form that can strongly tap into the consciousness. It stimulates our imagination as well as evokes emotions towards people or the goings-on around us, and helps us to see the world from a perspective outside of ourselves. Forming this kind of thinking is crucial if we want to truly understand the world.
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It celebrates human creativity
The day celebrates creativity as a whole. Creativity is an important aspect of how living beings live their lives. If we are not exposed to the arts, we can be in danger of developing a narrow-minded view of the world, or worse, we might not be able to properly understand how human emotion works. All forms of art are a display of our complexities as beings and can show us that there is more to what we see before our eyes.
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It honors the talented poets
Poetry And The Creative Mind Day also celebrates the many poets that have moved our hearts and minds. It is the day to truly recognize how people like T.S. Eliot, Maya Angelou, Robert Frost, Oscar Wilde, Charles Bukowski, and Allen Ginsberg can tune many people into their worlds and their ideas. These people have written words that have touched millions and shown the best of human creativity at play. It is only right that they are celebrated.
Poetry & The Creative Mind Day dates
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | April 19 | Wednesday |
| 2024 | April 19 | Friday |
| 2025 | April 19 | Saturday |
| 2026 | April 19 | Sunday |
| 2027 | April 19 | Monday |
