Throughout the years, my experience with poetry has been a rocky one. As a child, every two weeks, we had to learn a poem by heart and recite it in front of the whole class. And every two weeks, my mum patiently sat while I struggled to remember the words, or really, to care about the exercise itself – though I attribute this to my neurodivergent brain lacking to see the point of learning something by heart without understanding it.
Years later, during high school, one of the fundamental exams to graduate was an oral exam on a literary text studied during the school year. Unfortunately for me, I found myself having to present a poem, which was the one thing I hated the most. During our entire unit on poetry, I found myself being bored by the structure - the complicated sentences, and the morose atmosphere created by the poets. I was, after all, studying poems by Baudelaire and Rimbaud, French poets known for being particularly depressing. Out of all the exams I took during that year, it was by far the worst grade I ever got, which really did not inspire me to read more poetry.
By that point, I was pretty sure that poetry just wasn’t for me. I always struggled to understand the meaning behind the sentences, which I felt were often pompous and a little far-fetched. It wasn’t until the summer between my first and second year of university that I finally gave poetry a second (or third, or fourth, or fifth) chance.
The first ever poetry collection that I read and enjoyed was Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur. I think that just like many other people, I was drawn to it by the Instagrammable structure and drawings and short and to-the-point poems. It was easy to read. It was relatable. And it still packed a punch. I think a lot of people are quick to believe that poems need to be inaccessible, that you need a degree and hours of research to understand the meaning behind a couple of words. I know that when I tell people that I love Rupi Kaur’s poetry, they tend to raise an eyebrow and ask: ‘Is it really poetry though?’.
Often, I like to tell these people about a conversation I had with my father about modern art. We often look at modern art and think: ‘Well, that’s pretty basic, I could’ve thought of that too.’ And yes, I think the beauty of it is that anyone could be able to do it and copy the artist’s idea. But as my father like to say: it isn’t about whether or not it is easy to make, but about the creative brain who though to do it first.
Rupi Kaur’s poetry is simple. She doesn’t use complex syntax or pedantic words, but she still found a way to master such simple words to create an experience that is both universal and deeply personal. It requires skill and a great understanding of the language to be able to create poetry like this. So while they aren’t the most intellectual poems, I think they are a great way to get into poetry.
From there, I found myself because up increasingly ‘difficult’ poetry collections, and realised that now that I was more open to it, a bit older, and probably a bit more versed in poetry, I could understand them better than I used to. I now enjoy poetry by Oscar Wilde, Ocean Vuong, and even Sylvia Plath.
I think that the most important thing is to start at your own pace. Do not let other people’s criticism stop you from trying something new and give a chance to something you previously didn’t enjoy. You will often find that by starting with something that is easier, you will probably develop a better understanding of the subject and be able to give a shot to the more difficult stuff.
Easy Poetry Recommendation:
- Rupi Kaur – Milk and Honey, The Sun and her Flowers, Home Body
- Courtney Peppernell – Pillow Thoughts, Watering the Soul, I Hope you Stay
- Amanda Lovelace – Women are Some Kind of Magic series, You Are Your Own Fairytale series, Flower Crowns and Fearsome Things
Juliette @a_spoonful_of_juliette
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