What do you know about the modern English poetry and the characteristics?

What do you know about the modern English poetry and the characteristics?

Ans. Modern English poetry consists of English, Irish and American poetry. At the end of Victorian era, we find elements of modernism in poetry. Different kinds of poetry were written in the modern age. For example, Modern American poet Whitman writes about democracy, Robert Frost writes about nature, Yeats writes about Irish troubles, Eliot writes about poetry of social criticism. Modern poetry expresses a note of revolt and criticism. T.S Eliot says, "The essential advantage of a poet is not to have a beautiful world to deal with, it is to be able to see beneath both beauty and ugliness, to see the boredom and the horror and the glory." Therefore modern poets write about nature, patriotism, ghost, religion, materialism etc.

 The important characteristics of modern poetry are the following:

·        Love for humanity and glorification of working class people.

·        Loneliness, frustration, isolation, indecision etc. are expressed in modern English poetry.

·        Modern English poetry is marked by humanitarian and democratic spirit.

·        In modern poetry we find mysticism or religious ideas.

·        Modern English poetry is symbolic.

·        Modern poets use various symbols and images to express their feeling.

·        Social, political crisis of the age is also expressed in modern English poetry.

·        Modern English poetry expresses a pessimistic idea. It expresses a criticism of life and society.

·        Modern English poetry expresses the realistic attitude of the poets. It expresses realistically the life of the people.

·        Modern poetry also expresses love for nature. But their love for nature is not like the romantic love for nature.

·        The style of modern poetry is also unique. There is myth, allusion, reference from different braces of knowledge. As a result modern poetry is scholarly and intellectual.

·        Modern poets use conversational, colloquial language in their poetry.

Just as Victorian poetry was an outcome of romantic poetry. Like wise modern poetry was a outcome of Victorian poetry. In other words, Victorian poetry influenced modern poetry. Modern poets not only wrote about social criticism but they also wrote about nature, mysticism, spiritualism. In fact, modern poetry shows diverse steam of poetry. Yeats wrote romantic, patriotic and mystic poetry. He wrote about Ireland, Irish people, their struggle for freedom and democracy. Frost wrote regional poetry. He wrote about New England, its nature, the people, their occupation. Whitman wrote about democracy, American history, his personal self. Eliot wrote about the condition of post first world was civilization. He wrote about the horror and despair of war.

Modern poetry gives importance to realistic presentation of life. Realism in modern poetry is a result of excessive romanticism of the poets of the past. Modern poets use symbols, images in order to describe the horror, cruelty, materialism, selfishness, loneliness, isolation etc.

It is said Dante only visited hell and he gives a terrible picture of hell in his Divine comedy. But Baudlair came from there. Baudlair gives a more realistic picture of Paris in his poetry. Modern English poetry is influenced by Baudlair. Eliot was greatly influenced by Baudlair. Therefore, modern English poetry gives a pessimistic picture of life, that prevails in hell. Baudliar is called the father of modern poetry and Eliot is called the father of modern English Poetry.