Download “The power of poetry lies in its use of language” To what extent do

“The power of poetry lies in its use of language”
To what extent do you agree with this view?
Respond to this question with close reference to at least TWO
poems you have studied.
To a large extent, language such as metaphors and oxymorons provides poetry with
power. This so-called ‘power’ is the poem’s ability to communicate a message and
the strength of this message. The poems, “London” by William Blake and “No
Ordinary Sun” by Hone Tuwhare, contain examples of language that make poetry
such a powerful medium for the transmission of ideas.
In “London”, the narrator describes a city in sadness and “woe”. Deep into Blake’s
poem, the second stanza offers a powerful use of language, a metaphor: “mind
forged manacles”, which compares the mental capacities of the individuals being
trapped in the same fashion as prisoners are trapped by chains and shackles. It is
here that Blake’s metaphor provides power to his poem, as it communicates this
strong message of a trapped society, help captive by their minds. This message is so
powerful that it makes us think of Plato’s “Cave Allegory”, where the captives are
completely unaware of the truth and are held back by the false stories presented by
the projectionists. Again, this links to societies that are trapped because all they
know and all that has been projected is fear. From this, the power of poetry, indeed,
lies in its use of language, a case being this metaphor. To continue with this
example, Blake employs a shocking, grotesque and utterly horrible oxymoron in the
final stanza: “blights in plague the marriage hearse” The power of poetry is also
explained here; the oxymoron emphasises the idea that the father’s adultery has
infected his wife and “new-born” with the “harlot’s curse” – syphilis. Blake is able to
effectively communicate his message about the complete lack of freedom individuals
have, a case being the baby, who is to die not for its own choices but because of his
or her father. This is powerful as it links to Shakespeare’s loyal character, Edmund
from King Lear, who is called a “bastard” and “base” and lives a life of turmoil
because of his father’s “lusty stealth of nature”. Edmund is trapped with the title of
“base” and this is completely out of his control – a powerful message. Overall, if
such a well communicated and a strong message is able to be coined from this
poem, then, once again, the power of poetry lies in its use of language.
Furthermore, “No Ordinary Sun” contains a narrator – through apostrophe – begging
to a tree to resign and “let your arms fall”, because the “radiant ball” will be
victorious. Tuwhare, in his third stanza, introduces the metaphor, “wreathed with
delightful flight of birds”, which indicates that the birds – compared to beautiful
flowers – is no longer present on the tree because of the nuclear fallout. Clearly, the
idea that the nuclear testing and warfare is not only affecting its victims but also the
very beauty of nature is easily seen. This idea is powerful because we are brought
back to the pictures of land in Japan – home to make beautiful environments –
being completely bare and ugly since the nuclear bombing has caused this. Such a
strong idea proves that the power of poetry lies in its use of language. To further
labour this point, another metaphor is used by Tuwhare in his forth stanza, “the
fading green of your magic emanations shall not make pure again”. The metaphor
expresses the idea that the source of life for the vast ecosystem is destroyed by the
nuclear fallout, possibly resulting in the subsequent deaths of everything else in
nature. This strong idea further extends the effect of the nuclear bomb’s aftermath
on nature as it slowly cripples and destroys it. We further see what man is doing to
nature, not only in the aspect of nuclear bombs and testing but other slow inducers
of death, pollution. Tuwhare poem is also powerful because it is able to address the
environment situation at present, making the statement that the power of poetry lies
in its language more and more true.
Both poems contain language that creates strong and well communicated ideas,
which in essence provides the poem with power. In “London”, the idea of a fully
trapped society is explained by the metaphors and oxymorons used. Secondly, the
poem, “No Ordinary Sun” contains two metaphors that also explain the
consequences of nuclear warfare on nature let alone the intended victims. With this
in mind, Robert Frost’s words proven: “a poem begins in delight and ends in
wisdom”.