How to read poetry if you think you don't like it

TUREFF• •0

Many people decide at school that poetry is not for them. It was something to be analysed for an exam, with a right answer you did not know. If that is your experience, it is worth trying again with a different approach. Reading poems for pleasure is far more relaxed, and it does not require a single literary term.

Let go of the right answer

The biggest obstacle is the idea that a poem is a puzzle with one hidden meaning. Most poems are open to more than one reading, and poets themselves often say they do not fully know what their poems mean. You are allowed to:

enjoy a poem without understanding all of it
like one line and ignore the rest
dislike a famous poem
change your mind on a second reading

Start with the right poems

School anthologies often lean towards older work with unfamiliar language. Easier ways in include:

Contemporary poetry written in everyday language about recognisable experiences: work, family, cities, loss, love.
Short poems. A haiku or a ten-line poem can be read several times in a minute.
Poems on subjects you care about, whether that is football, food, grief, nature or parenthood.
Song lyrics and spoken word. If you love lyrics, you already enjoy many of the things poetry does.
Anthologies organised around a theme. They let you sample many voices and find the ones that speak to you.

A simple way to read a poem

Read it aloud. Poetry is written for the ear. Rhythm, rhyme and the sound of words often make more sense spoken than read silently.
Read it more than once. The first time, just listen. The second time, notice what catches your attention.
Follow the sentences, not just the lines. Many poems run sentences across line breaks. Reading to the full stop rather than pausing at every line end often clears up confusion.
Notice one thing. A striking image, a surprising word, a line that stays with you. You do not need a theory of the whole poem.
Ask simple questions. Who seems to be speaking? To whom? Where are we? What changes between the beginning and the end?
Notice how it makes you feel before worrying about why.

A few useful ideas, without the jargon

Line breaks make you pause, and a poet often uses them to create surprise or emphasis.
Images are pictures in words. Poems often work by showing rather than explaining.
Repetition builds rhythm and emphasis, as in songs and speeches.
Form is the shape a poem takes. A sonnet, for example, traditionally has fourteen lines and often turns its argument part way through. Spotting a form is a bonus, not a requirement.

Build a habit

One poem a day. Many poetry organisations and publishers run free poem-a-day newsletters or apps. A poem takes less time than checking the news.
Keep a collection by the bed and read a poem or two before sleep.
Copy out a poem you like by hand. It slows you down and you notice things you missed.
Listen to poets read their work. Recordings and readings show how a poem is meant to sound.
Go to a reading or open mic. Live poetry is often funnier and more direct than people expect.

When a poem does not click

Move on. Not every poem will speak to you, just as not every song does. Find one poet whose work you enjoy, then read more by them and explore the poets they mention as influences. Is there a poem that changed your mind about poetry? Share it in the comments.