Poems give me the “ick” AIBU?

[Nevergotdivorced]

I saw an estrangement thread on Gransnet, the OP had sent her estranged daughter a card with a poem she had composed.

My immediate thought was NO!

I then thought I was being a bit harsh and some people would find it moving.

I think it’s really cringy.

Elizabeth Bennet: I wonder who first discovered the power of poetry in driving away love?
Mr. Darcy: I thought that poetry was the food of love.
Elizabeth Bennet: Of a fine stout love, it may. But if it is only a vague inclination I'm convinced one poor sonnet will kill it stone dead

Ah, it doesn't beat:

There was a young lady from Bude
Who went for a swim in the sea.

DS's GF lives in Bude. I have to restrain myself from quoting it every time he mentions going there.

It's like any form of writing. Some is good some is bad. In general I love poetry. It's often pithy and thought provoking.

I've been to a few Simon Armitage poetry readings and he's very funny. At the last one I went to of his I laughed a lot but the final couple of poems he read that night made me cry (they were about the loss of his Dad and my Mum had just died). Good poetry finds a point of connection or helps us see the world differently.

See you and raise you:

There was a young woman from Ealing
Who had a peculiar feeling
She laid on her back
And opened her crack
And pissed all over the ceiling.

The Simpsons parody absolutely nailed it!

Those of us old enough to have read Nigel Molesworth, know that there are poems. And then there are pomes: sissy stuff that rhymes.

I agree.

I’m definitely not a fan of poetry.

Poems written by (some) proper poets - fine. Poems printed in greetings cards or made up by people who can't write well - cringe.

Unfortunately more people think they can write poetry than are actually able to.

Good poetry has moments of truth though, like Eliot's 'metal leaves' in the street in Little Gidding. If you listen to autumn leaves blowing across the road, they do sound like metal.

Mary had a little lamb
She also had a duck
She put them on the mantlepiece
To see if they would match the wallpaper

haha it kind of did at that!

This thread reminds me of the quote attributed to Brendan Behan on the difference between prose and poetry.

There was a young fellah named Rollocks
Who worked for Ferrier Pollocks
As he walked on the Strand
With a girl by the hand
The tide came up to his knees.

‘Now that is prose,’ Behan said. ‘If the tide had been in, it would’ve been poetry.

People write appalling cringe poems. I always hated poetry, but I cried while helping DS with his GCSE English, reading the War Poets anthology. He nearly died of shame and never let me help him again, but some of those poems still stick in my mind 2 years later.

Harfleag harfleag harfleag onwards 😂 I love Molesworth dearly

Agree wholeheartedly with @TheOnlyLivingBoyInNewCross and @Waitingfordoggo - good poetry that you like is wonderful. Poor poetry written by amateurs is awful. This is not about poetry as an art form though, it's about personal taste - everyone likes different things. I find it very odd when people say they don't like poetry, but the same people merrily sing along with their favourite bands. You can't dismiss all poetry because some greetings-card doggerel.

I’m loving all your replies and feeling better that I’m not alone in finding amateur poetry cringy.

The most appropriate poem to an estranged child should be the famous words of Phillip Larkin

They fuck you up, your mum and dad.

They may not mean to, but they do.

They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.

But they were fucked up in their turn
By fools in old-style hats and coats,

Who half the time were soppy-stern
And half at one another’s throats.

Man hands on misery to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get out as early as you can,
And don’t have any kids yourself.

The great man died childless.

I hate most poetry. It makes me cringe. My ex used to buy me Hallmark cards and watch my face while I read the poem to see how thrilled I was. Vile. Also posters on here who write poetry responses that are meant to be funny…

There’s a guy, I think called Lucas, on TikTok who I do like though. It’s not too twee and quite ‘real life’

🤣🤣 you’ve inspired me to put the CPL one in my funeral now … not that I have any plans on being flung off this mortal coil any time soon of course 😱🤣😂

anither fer yer collection @Nevergotdivorced

ta da! I give you; Len Pennie

@StormyLandCloud I found that poem such a comfort when I was bereaved.

Have a look at Adrian Mitchell's "They tuck you up, your mum and dad/ they read you Peter Rabbit too/ they fill you with the treats they had/ and add some extra, just for you".

Beautiful poem. But then I strongly dislike Larkin.

I also love "Song of Songs" in the Old Testament.

Deeply grateful I never had it when I used to read in church. I would have disappeared into the floor.

I must admit to having a talent for writing doggerel. To be kept brief and purely for fun purposes - I would never inflict sentimental verse on anyone, publicly or privately.

But I do love a good poem.

Musicals, however, really do give me the ick.

Good to see a few limericks making an appearance. Have we had Nantucket yet?

Are limericks poems? Some of those can be jolly funny! 🤣😂