I bought Mary Oliver’s Devotions(2017) and I am in the midst of a poetic revelation — not my first, but my most recent. I gave into the aesthetic TikTok post set to a reading of “Wild Geese” and bought the collection. If there’s a bandwagon, I’ve jumped on it. This particular bandwagon has me ruminating on poetry, where it stands in society, and how it has changed throughout history. As an English major who is a sucker for a rush of romanticism, I find myself confronted by the role of poetry in the age of social media.
On one hand, social media places the world at our fingertips, offering a never-ending ability to share and receive art through our screens. On the other hand, I ponder the loss of tradition — realms of poetry that the Victorians or Romantics have contributed to the literary world. Realistically, and my literary background aside, modern and traditional poetry are both noble pursuits. To feel poetic feelings, write poetic literature, and share your art is noble — but something is holding me back. I yearn for traditional poetry. I am an obnoxious “born in the wrong generation” complainer.
Mary Oliver has a special way of speaking about nature — one of poetry’s most prominent themes. She connects nature to the internal feelings of self-discovery and self-misunderstanding. I have an obsessive draw to mundanity, poetry about life, love, and the simple yet intricate human experiences.
I have a deep rooted hatred for poems that mention texting, social media, or anything that centres complicated relationships with modern technology. Maybe a psychological coping mechanism; my addiction to my phone stresses me out … As such, I’ve developed an aversion to poetry written before the 1900s (with some, but few, exceptions). I admit this is all a little pick me… I’m not like other girls, I like super old poetry… Cry me a river!
I digress — long story short, Mary Oliver changed that for me.
My modern poetry a-ha moment comes from Oliver, this wonderful woman, who lived until only a few years ago. She saw what I see, experienced the shift into an age of media craze, presumably got to know a few younger people, and yet held true to explorations of poetry in the natural sense. This forced me to dive a bit deeper into myself and ruminate on the idea of poetry in the age of social media.
I realized that poetry shared on social media is empowering in its own right. Varsity writer Esyllt Parry Lowther reflected on classic poetry’s media transformation.
“Poetry has not been immune to the rejuvenating force of social media, with three line micro-poems and aesthetically pleasing posts taking over our feeds.”
But with this daunting change to poetic tradition, there’s room for the expansion of beauty. I feared social media would “dilute the depth” of poetry as it shifted into bite-size snippets found online. A lover of classic literature, informality feels foreign, yet it is also all I have ever known.
The reality is that I experience poetry in various forms every day. I see it in thoughtful texts, posts from my favourite Instagram readers and writers, and TikTok trends set to beautiful words. Poetry has come full circle and remains prevalent in my life. Which makes me feel a bit dumb for being a hater — but hey, cheers to growth!
The way Mary Oliver prompted my internal poetic reflection means more to me than I can say. Now, I can stop being a pretentious classicalist and expand my exploration of poetry. Lowther said it with grace:
“The accessibility, creativity, and engagement fostered by social media have revitalized poetry, allowing it to evolve and adapt to the changing times. Social media has democratized poetry by breaking down traditional barriers to entry and enjoyment and has opened doors for diverse voices to publish their work, challenging traditional literary hierarchies.”
Poetry is not dead — it just looks different now. But it remains a product of humanity, regardless of the decade.
