Somnambules Forum Stanza's

Are stanza's to your opinion completely necessary? I see both sides of the coin, is to use stanza's more professional, if so, in whose eyes? Its a debate that I am always interested in hearing peopel's points of view on.

I tend to not use them but have a few pieces where I have. What are your thoughs? xx

My advice to anyone who wants to learn writing: read, read, read. And not just your peers' work. Read the classics. Read who is good at his or her art. Folks who have been recognized. Make up your own mind, find your own voice. Some people really like a classic rhyming scheme. Some like free-verse. Some like stanzas, some stream of consciousness. There are merits to both. Read some Whitman, Poe, Coleridge. Then look at TS Eliot, Dylan Thomas, MacNiece. Read some maya Angelou, cummings. Read some Neruda, Gibran.   Then find other poets you like, and study how they use words.   Personally, I usually use stanzas to break up thoughts, and make my poems more accesssible. Other great writers do not.   Marie

Thanks Marie, its interesting to know people's view on using them lol

I couldn't agree more with reading all you can, I devour the classic literature amongst the modern lol Its all good, keeps the inspiration alive too lol

Hugs

Poppy xx

There's no longer any need to EXCLUDE any rhetorical method or style these days because poetry is like porn: EVERYTHING has a nitche lol  So u can use or not use stanzas, depending. I think the real question is 'what is the function of a stanza?" and Marie touched on it.  Stanzas usually act like paragraphs in prose - there to distinguish one idea from the next, which makes the poem a bit more accessible to the reader.  Stanzas are good for philosophical or very conceptual or dialectal type pieces.  It usually creates a more moderate reflective tone, so if that's what you want to get across, then by all means, use stanzas.  Wordsworth is a classic example this.

HOWEVER, not using stanzas can go a lot of ways.  So you can cramp everything in, like Rimbaud or my Somnambules poem posted on this group (shameless ad lol) which tends to create a more intense, obscure dense tone.

One can use single lines, or even couplets or tercerts, Like Wallace Stevens, which tends to convey a more lyrical tone (and I think since ur a musician as well Poppy, this style appeals to u naturally)

there's a dozen other ways to avoid stanzas, or to use them, but those seem to be the most prevalant, at least according to me:)

Alessander, thank you! Thats really helpful sweet, I have phases where I use them and then not lol

I have found they do increase the flow when needed actually but I don't always use them. Your feedback and Marie's is most helpful, thank you both:)

Hugs  xx