By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
One of the things we often turn to poetry for is its power to move us with the written word alone. Just reading the right words, put into the right order on a sheet of paper, can produce tears in someone who never met the person who wrote those words and who possibly lives many centuries after the poet.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
Poetry can be an effective and powerful way of showing our gratitude to someone or for something. And through the centuries, poets have often expressed gratitude for a whole host of things: their spouses, the friendship of someone who has supported them, and much else. Some poets have even waxed lyrical about the very concept of gratitude and being grateful. Here are ten of our top picks of best poems about gratitude and appreciation.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
Poetry, as one of the creative arts, has often addressed the topic of creativity. Where do ideas come from? What is inspiration? What is the relationship between originality and creativity? Below, we introduce ten of the very best poems about creativity and creation of various kinds – not just artistic or poetic creativity but other forms of ‘making’ too.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
Many of us turn to poetry when we go through heartbreak, because tough times require a tough language, and poetry provides just that. Below, we introduce our pick of ten of the greatest poems about heartbreak from the sixteenth century to the present day.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
Poets often find themselves backed into a corner when writing more traditional rhyming poetry. They find they’ve ended a line with the unpromising word ‘orange’ and now have to try to find a word that rhymes with it, or else change the offending word for something more rhyme-friendly. But ‘world’ is a curious example: a common and useful word for a poet to use, but one without many ready and available rhyming words. After all, what words rhyme with ‘world’?