The Usefulness of Poetry

In this recent Atlantic article, Noah Berlatsky writes about the controversial statement, “Poetry is useless.” Despite what some poets believe, Noah says that the usefulness of a poem depends on what it says, not what it is.

In other words, if you think all poetry is useless, you aren’t looking hard enough.

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Kelly Opdycke is a Rumpus intern and an optimist with realist tendencies. She spent her summer at 826LA, where she helped English-Language Learners master homophones in the Amazon, take notes while exploring the Endeavour space shuttle, and write resumes that explain their exceptional hide-and-seek skills. Before this, she received her master’s degree from CSULA. She will be applying to doctoral programs this fall.

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