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The Poetic Dangers In Framing Hip Hop

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

An article on the Washington Post blog at the end of last month set out to make the point that poetry is on a downward trajectory towards death, if it’s not dead already. As an example, the author points out that the only cultural activity that polls worse than reading poetry is going to the opera.

Two digs with one stone.

But an assertion like this cries out for the question, "But what do you mean by 'poetry?'" Generally, we mean a literary form that uses language as an instrument to convey meaning—like a musical instrument, with tones and harmony and meter. In this case, an assertion of poetry’s decline seems absurd in the face of hip hop and rap’s global reach.

But here we should also be careful to avoid falling into a trap where we try to gentrify hip hop, forcing it into the privileged institution of poetry. When we try to define hip hop in terms of what we imagine our capital-P Poetry to be, we’re participating in a form of colonization, framing an already existing culture and art with a context that it doesn’t need.

The global success of hip hop culture makes it pretty clear that hip hop is doing just fine without the assumed pedigree of poetry. In fact, according to the numbers, it’s more likely is that poetry could use a little help from hip hop.

Fletcher Powell has worked at KMUW since 2009 as a producer, reporter, and host. He's been the host of All Things Considered since 2012 and KMUW's movie critic since 2016. Fletcher is a member of the Critics Choice Association.