What is This Poetic Era Good For, Anyways?

Symbolism was an artistic movement, one particularly prevalent in the world of poetry, that originated in late nineteenth-century Europe. It was a reactionary movement, born out of the artistic community’s distaste for the raw, harsh depictions of reality that manifested themselves within the literature of the naturalist and realist periods. Symbolists, unlike many writers and poets of the time, rejected society’s embrace of the ordinary. They promoted life’s beauties and perfections, using spirituality and imagination to evoke emotion and impassion their readers. Their language was traditional and their ideology supernatural, and their encouragement of the pursuit of passion and consumption of art in the modern world had a lasting effect on European society.


This poetic era is good for those who find little joy in analyzing the patterns and idiosyncrasies of modern poetry. It is good for people who find themselves more comfortable with simple rhyme schemes and traditional language than line breaks and onomatopoeia. It’s good for those with great interest in religious or mythological literature, as its references to holy texts and biblical tales are as abundant as they are subtle. It is good for people who enjoy the occasional metaphor, but often have trouble with poetry so deep that it seems indecipherable. It is an era that will particularly interest those more captivated by idealism than realism, people who allow their imaginations to stretch far beyond the bounds of reality.


This poetic era is certainly not for everyone. The complexity of the language and the unfamiliarity of the sentence structure can make for difficult reading, even if the poem’s message may be relatively simple once understood. Those who look to poetry for personal connection or relatability may also struggle with this British symbolism. The ideals encouraged by these poets are ones people often strive for or look to for inspiration, but very rarely achieve. The poems also seem to rarely tell a story or have any character involvement, so people interested in poetry with a storyline may not be particularly interested in the work of this era.





However, if you’re seeking inspiration or looking to find greater meaning within the context of the normalities and repetition of your life, this is the poetic era for you! It’s encouragement of the pursuit of passion and the rejection of life’s social constructs is nothing short of inspiring. It also may appeal to those with some interest in existentialism, as the entire movement upon which the genre was founded was based upon the rejection of reality and societal norms.