Spoken word, or “slam poetry,” began in blue-collar, 1980’s Chicago as a way for the common man to reclaim poetry, according to Alix Olson, editor of a compilation of the stories of a select few female spoken word artists. Competitions were held in bars and coffee shops, and judges were randomly selected from the audience rather than using so-called “experts.” Slam became incredibly popular with the anti-capitalist and other counter-cultural movements, and created a safe space for the outcasts of society.
Today, there are countless spoken word competitions all around the world, for every level of experience. Whether it is in an intimate gathering in a coffee shop for novice poets, or huge competitions, like National Poetry Slam, for the more
Joan Baez, a famous folk singer, sang her most famous song “Oh Freedom” during the civil rights movement. She expressed her want and need for equality and freedom f...
Sid Smith, T.,Arts Critic. (1994, Oct 30). STRICTLY NON-SPEAKING PERFORMER PETER COOK SEEKS TO COMMUNICATE BEYOND WORDS. Chicago Tribune (Pre-1997 Fulltext). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/283742574?accountid=26459
“Words”(1) are often difficult to form into speech, especially when there is a barrier of translating what they mean as opposed to what they say....
Alternatively, this also refers the poem to a dialect, more specifically an African-American dialect. We Strike straight to the point. We” (5-6). The frequent use of alliteration has a percussive effect, similar to crashing ciphers or the boom of a dual bass, “Sing sin” (7), “Jazz June” (9).
The host of Lexicon Valley podcast, John H. McWhorter, reveals that words referencing women have interesting origins in “Words, for Her” (2018). McWhorter uses song lyrics, a play, a poem, and the Salem Witch Trial transcripts to support his argument. He discusses the origins and histories of words in order to educate people on how words have changed throughout time. Persons interested in etymology would enjoy listening to McWhorter.
The lyrics of country music reflect people’s lives as times changed. According to "Poetry For The People: Country Music And American Social Change", published by Southern Quarterly in Ebsco Host, country music depicted “the white, Protestant and working-class Southerner”, “addressed their pain, their dreams struggles, beliefs and moral dilemma”.
... barmaid was dancing and singing music to escape from the reality of jeopardy because when the music stopped, the barmaid paused and watched the juke box until the music began again. In other words, the people of the Harlem used music as an effective tool to get rid of or to escape from their difficulties.
Concrete poetry presents its readers with a unique and often confounding situation. In addition to using language or parts of language in non-traditional ways, concrete poetry also uses elements that are more commonly associated with visual art. However, concrete poetry is not visual art. It is still concerned, primarily, with the use of language, generally to communicate some meaning to the reader in a way that is undeniably linguistic in nature. Concrete poetry is therefore an especially unique genre that draws upon and incorporates many different concepts from a variety of disciplines in order to fill in the gaps left when traditional grammar and syntax are eschewed.
It is a way to crucially engage oneself in setting the stage for new interventions and connections. She also emphasized that she personally viewed poetry as the embodiment of one’s personal experiences, and she challenged what the white, European males have imbued in society, as she declared, “I speak here of poetry as the revelation or distillation of experience, not the sterile word play that, too often, the white fathers distorted the word poetry to mean — in order to cover their desperate wish for imagination without insight.”
One prominent social re-invention of poetry that comes to mind is that of the “Beat Movement”. The "Beat Movement" in modern literature has become an important period in the history of literature and society in America in particular but also around the world. Incorporating influences such as jazz, art, literature, philosophy and religion, the beat writers created a new and prophetic vision of modern life and changed the way a generation of people see/saw the world. One of the most important contributions to contemporary verse was to take poetry out of the classrooms and into non-academic setting coffee houses, jazz clubs, large public auditoriums and even athletic stadiums making it an even more social act/form of expression. Poetry is more popular and more read at this time than anytime in previous history, not only spoken poetry but also sung poetry of a high order, reminiscent of poetries origins. Keeping this further socialisation of poetry in mind I would also like to stress the point that although poetry was in its most social environment yet the emphasis was firmly on the individual and their individual poetry, attempting to isolate their poetry from all previously heard. So in the ideal situation although the act would be social, the object would be isolated.
How the Poem Stealing by Carol Ann Duffy Creates a Sense of a Real Person Speaking
Words and emotions can be communicated through the use of poetry and song. They can reflect hope, desire, melancholy or grief. In today’s modern world technology has majorly impacted the way people communicate and express their opinions and share beliefs. Even though times have changed, poetry and lyrics will always have significance in any situation. The Sound of Silence by musical duo Simon and Garfunkel explores the lack of communication between people. In poetry the theme of communication is conveyed more subtlety in the poems The Street by Octavia Paz and Milking before Dawn by Ruth Dallas. These three artists have effectively used poetry and song lyrics to express communication using different techniques. They are all both poetically effective and wonderfully written.
Oral language is the creation of messages produced with vocals, as opposed to written text or gestures. Today much of our communication is handled orally, especially for students in early years of school that are unable to read and write but must communicate with their teachers. In later years, oral language is heavily focused on in school and students are encouraged to share their opinions mid class and give presentations. This is to prepare students for situations in society and at the workplace where they must be able to communicate clearly and efficiently. Generally, students are expected to possess some level of oral language capability entering kindergarten, which teachers are then expected to build upon (Solley, 2014). Students initially build their oral language capabilities from the millions of words that they hear from their parents and home environment. With different home environments, this leads to varied levels of capabilities between students (Snow et al., 2012, p. 496). To get every stu...
In public speaking I learned many types of concepts, theories and terms of communication. In concepts of publicly speaking there’s, relaxation, practice, credibility, attention getters, attire, organization, volume, emotion, audience relation, and movement. In my first speech, “The any old bag speech” I quickly learned the do’s, don’ts and concepts of my speech performance.
Wright, Richard, and Edwin Rosskam. 12 Million Black Voices. New York: Thunder's Mouth, 1988. Print.