What do you think? Is it poetry?

Question

There are conflicting opinions on what makes poetry poetry. Lyrical poetry...is it really poetry? For example, is Bob Dylan a poet? Once, after attending a Dylan concert in Berkeley with Allen Ginsberg and Ken Kesey, Lawrence Ferlinghetti was embittered, ranting about a stringy kid with an electric guitar drawing a bigger audience than a major poet such as himself. In an interview with Robert Shelton, Ferlinghetti acknowledged that Dylan has a poet's imagination, but added, "I still think he needs that guitar."

So, what is poetry? What makes something a poem and not just a song? Paul Garon, for example, has made the emphatic and stipulative pronouncement that all blues is self-evidently poetry and that those who think otherwise must be mentally defective. What do you think?

I asked this question in the poetry section, but figured I should ask it here as well. Thanks for the answers!

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker

I'm not sure what makes poetry poetry. I do think, however, that Dylan is a poet. His ability to take absolute bullshit and make it sound beautiful makes him a poet.

Asker's Rating:

Asker's Comment:

=)

Answer 2

Bob Dylan was and is a wonderful poet and Lawrence Ferlinghetti was probably just embittered by the fact that Bob Dylan could have a lot more fame even though he wasn't a serious poet like Ferlinghetti

Answer 3

Not all music is poetry, but Dylan is certainly a poet.