You know what I’m talking about. The images we see on Instagram of poetry books or pages of poetry precariously placed to fit an Instagram or Tumblr theme because its “aesthetic”, or the captions of lines ripped from poems because it seemed to be caption worthy. Some people think that because of social media, poetry is seeing a revolution within the minds of young readers. But if poetry is only being viewed for social media purposes as a means to get likes, is the art of poetry really going through a revolution or losing all of its meaning?

I’m a Creative Writing and Telecommunications major. I have lived between the pages of books since I could put two sentences together as a child. I’ve used my imagination to create big plot lines and to write “novels” since I was in second grade, however, I just recently found the power of poetry.

Not through Instagram.

Not through Tumblr.

In a classroom dedicated to giving the students a deeper appreciation for the art of writing.

I fell in love with poetry.

I discovered the adrenaline rush that courses through one’s body when a line is so cleverly crafted that you have to do a double take. I recognized the power each word used in a poem demands. My heart was broken and made new with each line I wrote.

Poetry made me feel powerful.

So when I see people who are obsessed with obtaining likes or to be viewed as hipster using lines of some of my favorite poems with no care for the meaning behind the poem, I want to shove Sylvia Plath’s Ariel in their face and demand that they to actually listen to what is being said or to feel the power of Poe’s agony dripping from his language. To take a picture of Milk and Honey and lightly skim over it just to say you’ve read poetry defeats the purpose of the art. You are not cool by doing so. You are not “hip”. You are cheapening an already dying expression of emotion.

-A student of poetry