Emotional Sentiment vs. Literary/Artistic Craftsmanship

I find it interesting that the poems that most make the "top rated" poems board, most especially the top rate love poems board votes go down, that the bulk of those poems start to get 1's and 2's, and it doesn't seem to matter there artistic merit. From what I've seen for a poem on the top rated list not to go down it has to be filled with emotional sentimentality - with a lot of emotion and feeling, and it really doesn't have to be the best written and structured poem. It can fall short of literary masterpiece but yet stand tall in people's eyes. I recently posted a poem; "If Only" - not my best poem by far, from a literary and artistic stand point - that made the top rated love poems board and where virtually all my other poems that make top rated board would normally go down, this one went up. I'm not saying it was not, is not, a good poem, but what I am saying from a literary, artistic stand point and from the stand point of structure, it was far less than my best, but I will say this, it was overflowing with love and filled with romantic sentiment, and that's what made it a good poem, but the fact is, if it hadn't been so heavy on romantic sentiment, it probably would have died on the board, as well. From what I see the poems with literary, artistic, and linguistic craftsmanship die, when posted/added to the top rated board, while the poems with emotional sentimentality and base relatable emotions do well. That Leads me to believe sentiment is preferred more. What do you guys think, is sentimentality and base relatable emotions prized more by most P&Q members than artistic an linguistic craftsmanship??? And does most of P&Q perfer sentimentality and base relatable emotions, even over and above artistic and aesthetic beauty in the poems they fancy???

From what I can understand from your post Robert. You certainly support romantic and emotional sentiment rather than linguistic and literary/artistic craftsmanship.

If so?

Then I would say I am against romanticism. I think it is drivel, purely so, and merely should be used as a form of poetic improvisation. Why you ask?

Because it only speaks to the person intended. Rather than an audience as a whole I actually believe that artistic and literary craftsmanship should be applauded rather than the romantic or emotional sentiment.

But then this is my estimation of this discussion…

Ismail, I love romance and I am a natural romantic, but romance alone does not a great poem make. The heralded romantic poets Of the past (that came before me) weren't just heralded for their romanticism but, also, for thier artistry and the beauty there of, for their ability to craft a poem, bringing out that romantic sentiment, by using the gift of and within their tongues, their ability to use language. They managed to craft artiful beauty, using words to form a literary masterpiece and paint a linguistic picture, for their reader, while still expressing romantic sentiment. They were both artistically and romantically expressive. And I greatly admire their artistry, for anyone can write with sentiment (feelings, emotions) but it takes skill to write with artistry, but it seems here, that the artistry is not prized as much, and that's the gist of what I was, am saying!!!

Bob, I'm just a glass half full kind of guy. I believe in the positive and the power of positivity, that no matter what your circumstance is in life a strong base of positive love can take you through, help you to overcome. Yes, there are a lot of unpleasentries in life, more than enough to drown the world in negative energy, so I always try and bring a breath of positivity. You can let hard times, trails in life buckle you beneath them or strengthen your spirit. I say choose the more positive road.