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+on
+genre
+and
+the
+dimensionality
+of
+poetry
+how
+does
+one
+describe
+a
+poem
+a
+genre
+is
+a
+set
+of
+creative
+outputs
+that
+fit
+a
+given
+set
+of
+criteria
+genres
+are
+useful
+as
+a
+sort
+of
+shorthand
+when
+describing
+a
+thing
+of
+art
+instead
+of
+noting
+for
+example
+all
+of
+the
+objects
+depicted
+in
+a
+still-life
+that
+aren't
+people
+or
+land-features
+we
+call
+it
+a
+still-life
+and
+get
+on
+to
+describing
+how
+the
+objects
+interrelate
+to
+each
+other
+on
+the
+canvas
+if
+you
+ask
+me
+what
+kind
+of
+painting
+i'm
+working
+on
+and
+i
+say
+a
+still-life
+you
+have
+an
+expectation
+of
+certain
+elements
+the
+painting
+will
+contain
+if
+you
+happen
+to
+be
+an
+agent
+and
+try
+to
+sell
+the
+painting
+later
+you'll
+say
+to
+your
+prospective
+buyers
+it's
+a
+still-life
+and
+whether
+the
+buyer
+is
+over
+the
+phone
+or
+standing
+in
+the
+gallery
+they'll
+know
+whether
+they'll
+like
+it
+or
+not
+based
+on
+whether
+they
+like
+still-lifes
+in
+the
+same
+way
+they
+can
+call
+you
+up
+and
+ask
+if
+you
+have
+any
+still-lifes
+for
+sale
+right
+now
+and
+get
+a
+simple
+yes-or-no
+answer
+for
+it
+this
+is
+the
+first
+kind
+of
+genre
+and
+it
+applies
+well
+within
+separate
+types
+of
+fundamentally-different
+media
+such
+as
+painting
+sculpture
+film
+or
+the
+written
+word
+a
+poem
+obviously
+is
+in
+this
+last
+category
+and
+for
+some
+reason
+its
+designation
+is
+hairier
+than
+others
+people
+refer
+to
+all
+sorts
+of
+art
+or
+even
+dispassionate
+events
+as
+poetry
+dancing
+is
+called
+poetry
+in
+motion
+for
+example
+i
+think
+the
+confusion
+is
+caused
+in
+part
+by
+the
+nature
+of
+writing
+as
+a
+medium
+namely
+in
+that
+it
+captures
+thoughts
+more
+clearly
+and
+communicably
+than
+other
+art
+forms
+while
+a
+picture
+can
+be
+worth
+a
+thousand
+words
+as
+the
+old
+clich
+goes
+when
+those
+words
+are
+actually
+written
+out
+they
+can
+contain
+shades
+of
+meaning
+impossible
+to
+capture
+in
+the
+picture
+itself
+at
+least
+as
+quickly
+as
+they
+can
+be
+absorbed
+in
+writing
+it
+seems
+as
+though
+writing
+is
+akin
+to
+the
+fundamental
+nature
+of
+thought
+or
+at
+least
+of
+spoken
+language
+which
+our
+thought
+is
+steeped
+in
+so
+we
+know
+what
+writing
+is
+what
+is
+a
+poem
+especially
+in
+a
+world
+with
+such
+forms
+as
+prose
+poetry
+flash
+fiction
+short-shorts
+lyrical
+essays
+lyrical
+ballads
+et
+cetera
+what
+makes
+a
+poem
+a
+poem
+i
+read
+an
+essay
+once
+that
+lamented
+the
+unidimensionality
+of
+writing
+it
+posited
+that
+prose
+is
+really
+just
+a
+long
+wrapped
+line
+of
+text
+that's
+bound
+by
+time
+when
+you
+read
+a
+novel
+for
+example
+you
+really
+must
+start
+at
+the
+beginning
+and
+read
+through
+to
+the
+end
+in
+order
+some
+newer
+forms
+of
+fiction
+are
+changing
+this
+such
+as
+the
+choose-your-own-adventure
+genre
+in
+the
+1970s
+and
+80s
+or
+hyperfiction
+found
+online
+which
+raises
+the
+question
+for
+me
+if
+these
+newer
+forms
+could
+be
+considered
+on
+some
+level
+to
+be
+poetry
+this
+is
+because
+poetry
+has
+more
+than
+one
+dimension
+due
+to
+its
+linear
+nature
+those
+line
+breaks
+are
+intentional
+and
+the
+poem
+can't
+just
+fit
+into
+any-sized
+book
+or
+web
+page
+if
+prose
+is
+a
+liquid
+filling
+any
+container
+it's
+placed
+in
+with
+a
+constant
+volume
+poetry
+is
+more
+like
+a
+crystallized
+form
+of
+prose
+or
+to
+put
+it
+another
+way
+poetry
+has
+between
+one
+and
+two
+dimensions
+i
+wouldn't
+say
+that
+poetry
+has
+fully
+two
+dimensions
+except
+for
+some
+of
+the
+more
+conceptually
+visual
+stuff
+that
+i'd
+call
+a
+word-picture
+anyway
+because
+from
+line
+to
+line
+that
+unidimensionality
+of
+prose
+remains
+poetry
+has
+a
+higher
+dimensionality
+than
+prose
+though
+because
+it's
+crystallized
+there
+on
+the
+page
+this
+fractal-dimensionality
+of
+poetry
+has
+interesting
+side
+effects
+on
+the
+genre
+itself
+for
+one
+thing
+poetry
+isn't
+as
+bound
+by
+time
+as
+prose
+is
+it
+can
+as
+marianne
+boruch
+writes
+resist
+narrative
+sequence
+or
+the
+forward
+press
+of
+time
+itself
+due
+to
+its
+repetitions
+and
+diversions
+which
+are
+in
+turn
+made
+possible
+or
+more
+apparent
+by
+its
+line
+breaks
+it's
+able
+to
+meditate
+on
+a
+subject
+or
+expand
+on
+it
+lyrically
+exploring
+the
+emotions
+connected
+with
+the
+images
+in
+the
+poem
+or
+the
+connections
+between
+images
+through
+repitition
+of
+sounds
+the
+poem
+builds
+meaning
+through
+resonance
+and
+rhyming
+something
+that's
+harder
+to
+do
+in
+prose
+take
+for
+example
+the
+first
+lines
+of
+the
+love
+song
+of
+j
+alfred
+prufrock
+let
+us
+go
+then
+you
+and
+i
+when
+the
+evening
+is
+spread
+out
+against
+the
+sky
+like
+a
+patient
+etherized
+upon
+a
+table
+let
+us
+go
+through
+certain
+half-deserted
+streets
+the
+muttering
+retreats
+of
+restless
+nights
+in
+one-night
+cheap
+hotels
+and
+sawdust
+restaurants
+with
+oyster-shells
+streets
+that
+follow
+like
+a
+tedious
+argument
+of
+insidious
+intent
+to
+lead
+you
+to
+an
+overwhelming
+question
+oh
+do
+not
+ask
+what
+is
+it
+let
+us
+go
+and
+make
+our
+visit
+and
+here
+it
+is
+again
+without
+line
+breaks
+let
+us
+go
+then
+you
+and
+i
+when
+the
+evening
+is
+spread
+out
+against
+the
+sky
+like
+a
+patient
+etherized
+upon
+a
+table
+let
+us
+go
+through
+certain
+half-deserted
+streets
+the
+muttering
+retreats
+of
+restless
+nights
+in
+one-night
+cheap
+hotels
+and
+sawdust
+restaurants
+with
+oyster-shells
+streets
+that
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+like
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+argument
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+intent
+to
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+you
+to
+an
+overwhelming
+question
+oh
+do
+not
+ask
+what
+is
+it
+let
+us
+go
+and
+make
+our
+visit
+the
+end-rhymes
+that
+do
+so
+much
+for
+the
+sound
+of
+the
+poem
+are
+gone
+and
+so
+part
+of
+the
+meaning
+of
+the
+poem
+its
+obsessive
+self-consciousness
+its
+paranoia
+are
+gone
+as
+well
+additionally
+line
+breaks
+act
+as
+punctuation
+in
+the
+entirety
+of
+this
+fragment
+without
+them
+the
+meaning
+becomes
+obscured
+in
+the
+long
+first
+sentence
+of
+the
+poem
+perhaps
+due
+to
+this
+dwelling
+on
+scene
+or
+on
+all
+aspects
+of
+a
+single
+scene
+at
+one
+time
+poetry
+tends
+to
+be
+heavy
+on
+images
+or
+lyrical
+i
+think
+this
+is
+what's
+generally
+meant
+when
+someone
+describes
+a
+dance
+as
+poetic
+or
+a
+story
+or
+anything
+else
+i
+think
+they
+really
+mean
+lyrical
+or
+maybe
+beautiful
+the
+images
+form
+sort
+of
+a
+narrative
+as
+the
+reader
+moves
+through
+them
+as
+cesare
+pavese
+says
+that's
+nevertheless
+different
+than
+a
+traditional
+narrative
+this
+image
+narrative
+jumps
+from
+image
+to
+image
+not
+by
+a
+logical
+progression
+but
+by
+the
+resonances
+between
+the
+images
+that
+run
+underneath
+them
+on
+almost
+a
+subliminal
+plane
+almost
+without
+noticing
+the
+reader
+of
+a
+poem
+is
+taken
+on
+an
+emotional
+journey
+that's
+not
+necessarily
+connected
+to
+the
+images
+of
+the
+poem
+themselves
+poetry
+is
+a
+manipulation
+of
+emotion
+or
+a
+communication
+of
+it
+prose
+has
+the
+space
+the
+time
+to
+describe
+what's
+going
+on
+even
+if
+the
+author
+stands
+by
+the
+old
+adage
+of
+show
+don't
+tell
+showing
+in
+prose
+inherently
+involves
+more
+telling
+than
+poetry
+does
+as
+poetry
+communicates
+a
+feeling
+itself
+this
+definition
+may
+be
+broad
+enough
+to
+include
+certain
+dance
+performances
+or
+paintings
+but
+that's
+okay
+i'm
+of
+the
+opinion
+that
+the
+more
+useful
+genre
+distinctions
+are
+those
+which
+describe
+the
+thing
+technically
+verse
+for
+example
+or
+lyrical
+poetry
+is
+almost
+a
+value
+judgement
+and
+that
+makes
+me
+a
+little
+uncomfortable