Poetry

Articles, Films and practical Guides on poetry, part of Psyche’s coverage of creativity and the arts.
Portrait painting of a man in a thoughtful pose with hand on head wearing a dark coat and white cravat against a dark background.
POETRY

Existential crisis? Try reading Wordsworth

For many generations of readers, the poetry of William Wordsworth has been an irreplaceable balm for the soul

by Sam Dresser

Surreal painting of a celestial figure surrounded by angels and clouds, with vivid colours and dynamic movement.
THINKERS AND THEORIES

Embrace conflict, reject authority – William Blake’s radical vision of a meaningful life

Video by Great Books Explained

Illustration of a room with a plant on a table, soft coloured walls and a window with curtains.
POETRY

‘You are me; I am you’ – a trans poet’s evocative message to her former self

Video by On Being

Photo of a hand using a black marker to redact text on paper several words are boxed to be emphasised.
POETRY

Reignite your creative fire with blackout poetry – the art of framing what’s already there

Directed by Andrew Lavers

Photo of a calm lake at dusk with a hippo partially submerged, only its eyes and ears visible above the water’s surface.
COMMUNICATION AND LANGUAGE

Metaphors open up our minds – but can also shut them down

The best analogies in poetry and science really crackle, but when do they expand our thinking and when do they constrain it?

by Claire O’Callaghan

Photo of a person speaking into a microphone holding an electric string instrument with a choir in the background.
THEATRE AND PERFORMANCE
1

The barbarians are at the gates in this electric Laurie Anderson performance

Video by All Arts

Painting of an elderly couple in 16th century attire, man in fur-lined coat and woman in white headdress on green background.
LOVE
9

There’s no good reason to love each other – and that’s a relief

Loving is an unreasonable decision (we are all extremely unpleasant little beasts) and that’s what allows it to survive

by John Kaag

A painting of a pregnant woman with wide, dark eyes and scared face, holding a lit match. She wears a red dress with white polka dots.
POETRY

The unseen lives of others take centre stage in this surreal poetry adaptation

Directed by Michelle Kranot and Uri Kranot

Black and white photo of a man with a ball on a littered street, graffiti and a fire escape visible on a brick building.
TRANSCENDENT EXPERIENCE

Our days are both rough and slippery. Hope brings traction

I want to defend and buoy hope – it’s a fragile, quirky thing, but it has the power to help us act in the face of finitude

by John Lysaker

Painting of a woman in 18th-century attire holding flowers by a window with a small dog on a bench.
POETRY
1

How to write a love poem

Flirtatious texts are soon forgotten. Learn to express your feelings in a beautiful way that will make a lasting impression

by Dan Simpson

Photo of a man in a plaid shirt enthusiastically gesturing in an art-filled room with a seated woman in the background.
POETRY

Why spoken word poetry is so much more than a poetry reading

As poetry returns to its roots as a performance art, it’s providing many with a powerful source of healing and community

by Erica Fletcher

Abstract illustration of a person with eyes closed, wearing glasses, surrounded by cosmic elements on a blue and black background.
POETRY
2

Enter a dreamy French surrealist poem, where love and reality never quite touch

Directed by Emma Vakarelova

Photo of a bookshop exterior with green columns and a window displaying books. A person reads inside.
STORIES AND LITERATURE
16

Reading books is not just a pleasure: it helps our minds to heal

Through my own struggles and in teaching bibliotherapy to students, I know that books can help to heal minds and hearts

by Peter Leyland

Monichrome drawing of a bearded man with a hat, holding a pole, facing a striped lighthouse on an island, both reflected on a calm body of water.
POETRY
1

Sail through Shakespeare’s melancholic soliloquy on life’s seven stages

Directed by Jérémie Balais and Jeffig Le Bars

Photo of a large spider sculpture silhouetted against a city skyline with cranes and a historic building in the background.
POETRY

A conversation with my spider Maman and Louise Bourgeois

Woman made of braided steel, monster I call Maman: why am I so scared of you? An imagined conversation with Louise Bourgeois

by Pascale Petit

Photo of an open book with scattered text, held by hands. The text appears as a poetic or artistic composition.
POETRY

The long poem is just right for our confounding, fractured age

The long poem is the right literary form for the unmanageable scale, the messy confusion and the epic ambivalence of our age

by Tess Somervell