|
|
|
1 June 2005: In my entry for yesterday, I said I thought the sole (primary)function of poetry was to directly provide verbal pleasure. I meant to say why this would make it biological advantageous to our species. That is necessary to say because I don't think any species can do anything for long that is not biological advantageous to it. My answer is simple: pleasure is a biological value as a suicide-preventive.
Poetry is biologically advantageous in many secondary ways. For instance, it shakes up one's verbal centers, which makes them more flexible and thus more likely to trip into useful fresh thoughts. It renews the language, in other words, as Pound said with no doubt better words. Renewed language yields renewed thought processes.
It provides relief from Reality. Time to recuperate.
I suppose the composition of poetry also displays high energy, so is a sexual attractor. Peacock's feathers. But minimally so--maybe a man's being a poet as well as a lawyer, say, will give him an advantage in attracting a mate over a man's being just a lawyer, but being a lawyer will easily trump being a poet.
|
|
|
|