“Painting is silent poetry, and poetry is painting that speaks.” – Plutarch
Is poetry dead?
No, Never.
Is poetry dead?
Far from it.
Literature has made our lives more colorful and more meaningful. The depth in the use of metaphors and hyperboles has given us a new meaning. True to its unspoken promise, literature has made life more beautiful and fun. Poets say the art not only exists on paper, but also in the streets, in music, in images, in motion. It is everywhere. And for some, it’s up there on stage.
Poetry Slam or spoken word poetry is a technique that utilizes wordplay and story-telling. The poems are written for the purpose of being performed in front of an immediate audience. Spoken word is a kind of poetry wherein poems are not only confined to the page but rather, through memorization, performed on stage. It heavily relies on the poet’s delivery to get its message and depth across, building from the age-old art of poetry. The technique originated from the poetry of African-Americans in Harlem (Marc Smith, 1984, Chicago). It often includes collaboration and experimentation with other art forms such as music, theater, and dance. And so, the poet will have to exhibit a certain degree of acting as well as some appropriate dynamics in public speaking and body language.
“Finding” poetry hasn’t been a problem in major cities and other parts of the Philippines. Let’s say for example in Manila, spoken word events are E V E R Y W H E R E. Seriously, a spoken word event can be as popular as a gig for rock bands. Listening to someone talk about his or her past, about the wounds opened and re-opened is now a trend. The most famous in the North, is Word Anonymous. One is even becoming a TV Star, Juan Miguel Severo, has a spot in “On the Wings of Love.” Spoken word poetry had been a good outlet of self-expression. If you check out videos online, the usual topics would be pain, unsuccessful relationship, gender issues; Spoken word is a detouring from the Philippine Literary tradition due to the utilization of certain techniques. Say for example, sentimentality, purple patches, and cliché in order to capture their attention and also to be relatable. You know the word, “hugot”?” It might be annoying to some but it is what sells.
Spoken word is slowly but steadily gaining momentum in the country. Since its rise in popularity, spoken word has been an effective outlet for people to express their views on different subjects. Because it is free-form, any topic under the sun can be used as motivation for a poem. Spoken word poetry in the Philippines has given such an impact both on the writers and to the audience it affects both of them. It’s a form of expression, a form of art,” “It’s something that makes you feel. People love to have something to feel and something to grasp on. Like when a poet performs a piece and you go ‘I felt this way’, we can see the effect it has on people. As more people get into it, it’s going to continuously grow until half the population could actually be into spoken word.
Spoken word poetry is not all about the #hugot. Essentially a form of poetry meant to be performed in front of an audience, spoken word is attracting young creatives to its particular voice – idealistic, poignant, and regardless of their young age, an acute awareness of life and its tempestuous moods.
“If I feel physically as if the top of my head were taken off, I know that is poetry.” ― Emily Dickinson
Leyte, Maria Anna P. | Regina Lucis College
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