Poetry, Multiculturalism, and Social Justice

Poetry And Imagined Worlds

What is Poetry?, 2023

"What is Poetry?" provides a compendium that provides accessibility, and easy discovery making it easier for people to discover new poems and poets they may not have encountered otherwise. This can be especially helpful for those who are new to poetry or who are looking for specific themes or styles. Having well known poems readily available can encourage more frequent engagement with poetry. Whether it's during a brief coffee break or while waiting in line, a quick compendium allows for instant immersion in the world of verse. It brings education, appreciation and exposure to diverse voices. A well-curated compendium can offer a glimpse into various historical periods, cultures, and perspectives, broadening the reader's understanding and appreciation of poetry. A quick reference guide can be invaluable for students or casual readers seeking to learn about different poetic forms, styles, and techniques. Inspiration: Reading a variety of poems can spark creativity and inspire individuals to write their own poetry. Poetry's evocative language and imagery can provide a calming and meditative experience, reducing stress and promoting relaxation. Emotional connection: Poems can evoke a range of emotions, allowing readers to connect with their own feelings and experiences in a meaningful way. Engaging with poetry can challenge perspectives, stimulate critical thinking, and encourage personal reflection and growth.

Social Affairs, 2016

The paper seeks to find an alternative approach to engaging with philosophy. Given that the pursuit of philosophy from ancient times has been the comprehension of truth, it attempts to look for possibilities in alternative ways of truth comprehension through poetry. The paper is devoted to the analysis of the epistemic interpretation of a particular kind of poetry as proposed by Martin Heidegger. It strongly argues for the epistemic validity of the knowledge that is arrived at through poetry of a kind, and in the process raises questions about analytical accounts of truth given in ancient philosophy wherein truth seems to be a propositional idea and the epistemic categories and methods used in these cases are mostly logical tools or empirical scientific methods. Thus the paper attempts to argue for the capacity of poetical discourse to be a means of philosophical truth, and to clarify the special nature of such poetry, as opposed to poetic discourse in general. The first task will be to clarify the kind of truth poetry makes manifest, and this will include differentiating poetic truth from propositional truth, and defining it in terms of the Heideggerean notion of aletheia (unhiddenness of Being). An attempt will be made to look at Heidegger's notion of truth and how it is different from the propositional idea of truth, and to defend that idea of truth in epistemology. A phenomenological hermeneutical and critical method will be employed in this exercise.

Journal of Literary Education

Poetry looks like a game and is not: a game does indeed bring men together but in such a way that each forgets himself in the process. In poetry on the other hand man is reunited on the foundation of his existence. There he comes to rest; not indeed to the seeming rest of inactivity and emptiness of thought, but to that infinite state of rest in which all powers and relations are active. Martin Heidegger (1949) What is poetry? The definitions are countless. As many as the people in this world. It might be argued that the most decisive aspect of poetry is its resistance to be defined, labeled, or pinned down. We all know how poetry sounds and feels, and we can recognize a poem when we hear, recite or read one. However, it may be difficult for us to explain, or offer a detailed account of what exactly is poetry and what its meaning might be, its effect, or significance in our lives. Very often, poetry is defined as a special kind of language which does innovative things with words, sound, rhythm and pattern; features which consist a constant source of our pleasure and understanding of the poem. We may even understand a poem not only by feeling its rhythms but also by hearing its sounds as well as by grasping its clusters of meanings, yet we may not be

2013

Effective writing requires engagement, but communicating this axiom to students could sometimes prove difficult. Nonetheless, teachers sometimes discover that their students can even write with their own voice when they employ certain genres, just as students' poems discussed in this article suggest that originality resulted from students' engagement with their selected subject matters. A first set of poems indicates that poetry writing gave students agency, and a second that it encouraged critical introspection. Consequently, students' poems provided a space for a genuine assessment of their writing competences. In analysing students' poems, this article posits that poetry writing can be included in expository writing instruction as a means for developing students' creativity, self- discovery and engagement in writing, as well as a tool for reflective practice.

The ALAN Review, 2003

Research for All

Research with communities, even co-produced research with a commitment to social justice, can be limited by its expression in conventional disciplinary language and format. Vibrant, warm and sometimes complex encounters with community partners become contained through the gesture of representation. In this sense, 'writing up' can actually become a kind of slow violence towards participants, projects and ourselves. As a less conventional and containable form of expression, poetry offers an alternative to the power games of researching 'on' communities and writing it up. It is excessive in the sense that it goes beyond the cycles of reduction and representation, allowing the expression of subjective (and perhaps sometimes even contradictory) impressions from participants. In this cowritten paper we explore poetry as a social research method through subjective testimony and in the light of our Connected Communities-funded projects (Imagine, Threads of Time and Taking Yo...

The Qualitative Report, 2024

This article stems from a workshop presented at the 15th TQR conference on poetry in teaching and learning qualitative research. Over the last few decades, scholars have argued for the use of poetry and other arts-based techniques in qualitative research. Most of the research, however, focuses on using poetry for data analysis and representation. In this article, we shift the conversation to the use of poetry for teaching and learning qualitative research. Starting with a poem in three voices of educator, student, and researcher, we provide an overview of poetry use in qualitative inquiry. We then offer brief overviews of poetic forms such as found poetry, identity poems, haikus, and free verse poetry. Subsequently, we share examples of how we have used these poetic forms in our own teaching and learning of qualitative research. In sharing the reasoning, guidelines, and examples of poetry use in the qualitative research classroom, we invite others wanting to implement poetry in their work to try one or more of the practices.