05-07-2015, 01:58 PM
From President Kennedy's speech about the late Robert Frost -
"When power leads man toward arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the areas of man's concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of his existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses, for art establishes the basic human truths which must serve as the touchstones of our judgment.
The artist, however faithful to his personal vision of reality, becomes the last champion of the individual mind and sensibility against an intrusive society and an officious state. The great artist is thus a solitary figure. He has, as Frost said, "a lover's quarrel with the world." In pursuing his perceptions of reality he must often sail against the currents of his time …"
I remember listening to a radio broadcast of Kennedy's inauguration, and how it thrilled me to hear Robert Frost's
"A golden age of poetry and power
of which this noonday's the beginning hour..."
So yes, for me, to a huge extent, poetry is political.
"When power leads man toward arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the areas of man's concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of his existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses, for art establishes the basic human truths which must serve as the touchstones of our judgment.
The artist, however faithful to his personal vision of reality, becomes the last champion of the individual mind and sensibility against an intrusive society and an officious state. The great artist is thus a solitary figure. He has, as Frost said, "a lover's quarrel with the world." In pursuing his perceptions of reality he must often sail against the currents of his time …"
I remember listening to a radio broadcast of Kennedy's inauguration, and how it thrilled me to hear Robert Frost's
"A golden age of poetry and power
of which this noonday's the beginning hour..."
So yes, for me, to a huge extent, poetry is political.