Clarity—from the Proverbs of Tharmas Erthona

[shemthepenman]

Not so apropos analogies aside, there are two starting places:

1. If the poem is unclear it is the readers fault.
2. If the poem is unclear it is the writer's fault.

It is starting to read as if greater clarity = better writing.

I heartily disagree.  Too much clarity is mundane and boring.  Prosaic, if you will.  There should be some challenge associated with poetry.  The best poems reveal additional layers of meaning with successive readings, growing in ratio to the work a reader is willing to put into it.

A great poem is like a great girl - it doesn't give it up all at once but teases with potential, undressing slowly as you invest more attention.

That being said, a great poem like a great riddle should be able to be resolved to a solution with enough work.

(I just read upthread and realized ella said pretty much the same thing but I see no sense in deleting it now, let's just say i agree with ella.)

yeah, and pretty much what I said first time around... a proverb itself is not saying something in the clearest way, it becomes clear. and by becoming clear is more enlightening. but that is all by the by, the fact is the proverb doesn't work. because the opposite could be equally true.