and the

I dont understand the big fuss about using words like 'and' or 'the' in poetry. Many people have critiqued poetry of mine saying I shouldn't use these words! I understand that they can be over-used, but using 'and' once in a poem is NOT overuse!!

I have also read critiques on other poems saying similar things when the writer has repeated the word 'and' in each stanza (ie the first line of each stanza is two verbs connected with 'and'...for example my poem 'the lonely feather').

Does the critic not realise that this has been used specifically? Repetition of a particular phrase technique emphasises that part of the poem, either linguistically or structurally.

I just dont understand why a poem is instantly considered bad just because it uses imperative conjunctives! Often when these words are removed from the poem, it lacks rhythm or particular emphasis.

For example:

Discarded and abandoned
The lonely feather
fluttered
In the air
supported
By the wind, it
danced
A pitiful, solitary pirouette

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Discarded, abandoned (this is softer and therefore loses the strong impact of the words)

A lonely feather (this loses the emphasis of the feather being singular and alone, suggesting that it is one of many, which is not the focus of the poem)

fluttered
In ??? air (what word could replace 'the' here without being a fancy adjective which distracts the attention?

supported
By ??? wind, it (^^^^)
danced
A pitiful, solitary pirouette.

Actually I think it reads better without those words. I could be mistaken in your opinion but you don't need fancy adjectives to make it sound poetic when all you can do is take out those words and it reads more beautifully.

fluttered
in air
supported
by wind

...???

to me that is too evasive, its as if the air is just...there... instead of that the air, and the wind are specific forces acting on the feather. They have a purpose therefore they need some kind of definition.

Iunderstand this kind of thing is subjective to everyone as people interpret things in different ways.
But my point is that the use of 'and' or 'the' and other similar words can change the meaning/ effect of a poem. Therefore thay can be used deliberately to create particular effects...people just assume they are 'fill-in words' and critice their use without actually realising that they may be an integral part of the poem.

Am I making any sense to anyone???!!

If the writer wanted a smooth flow then yes, but in my opinion the use of 'and' in the first line creates diffferent emphasis than a comma, which MAY on some occasions be deliberate...

I am not saying that my poem uses these deliberatly (I wrote it a long time ago and have yet to edit it) I am merely using my poem as a way of showing that some poets may use the effects of these words deliberately and I think people should take this into account rather than commenting things like 'You shouldn't use 'and'' as if its NEVER appropriate!

I suppose I am only saying that people don't read into the context/effect of these words they just see them in a poem and think the writer has no imagination.

I also agree that 'her face a beautifully sculptured Madonna' is more poetic than 'she had a face like that of madonna' but once again it depends on what kind of effect the writer is trying to create. Which is what you (Bob) said.

Not all poetry is written to be amazingly linguistic, sometimes it is written as a way of expression, where if it was 'improved' it would lose the meaning/emotion of the moment and would no longer express what the writer wrote it to express. But some people dont respect that.

I guess I just dont like to see young writers poems being torn apart and criticised, without a care for what the words/poem might actually mean/represent to the author.

Thanks for pointing out the sentence fragment, I hadn't noticed it, this stanza is only the first in the poem, which, when written by hand was set out differently in a way that the words floated over the page, resembling a feather floating to the ground. But this site doesn't show it properly which is why there are odd words...

its true what poetesse ^^ says.. everyone has their own style, and poems are meant to be written from the poets feelings and desires ... so if a poet feels the use of 'and' is needed to fulfill thier poetry, then why be critisesed.. biscuits the use of 'and' in your poem i feel is a great effect.. Kirsty xx

Poetry has gotten all F'd up. 'And' is a basic conjunction in English and 'The' one of the core words used in descriptive and explortory phrases and sentences. Yes, I would agree, some do overuse these words or un-necessarily use them. But I say, if one writes well, one writes well, and if a poem is good, it is good. Simply, if words such as these are used in a poem and it works well, that should be really all that matters. If the poet knows what they're doing and do it well, with use of such common words, as long as it a well done piece and it works, that's really all that matters!!!

yes I agree. You said what I was trying to say in a much clearer way!

"if words such as these are used in a poem and it works well, that should be really all that matters"

people dont bother to see if it works well or not, they just assume that it cant possibly be good because the words are too simple, which is by no means true!

One other note, I do not think there is a problem in using 'Like' for comparative purposes, if done well and used effectively. In fact, it is a part of poetry, writing, a term known as simile.

A simile: a figure of speech in which an explicit comparison is made between two essentially unlike things, usually using like, as or than, as in Burns' "O, my luve's like A Red, Red Rose" or Shelley's "as still as a brooding dove," in "The Cloud.

Using 'Like' as a means of comparsion in poetry is one of the basics and is almost as old as poetry its self. It's how you use it (or how well) that is the difference. It is the form of comparsion that'll work best is the question, but there's nothing wrong with using it.

I must say though, Bob does make some valid pionts, but I still say, if you can use 'Like' 'And' and 'The' and other words such as these in a manner in which they add to your poem, poetry, then by all means do. But yes, it does need to be noted that not all can!!!