For centuries, men have been the creators, artists, writers and poets. Women were only meant to breed heirs and birth kings. But in this millennia, women have been evolving into a beacon of hope and serve as an inspiration to others, with some women now rising into stardom as well-known poets.
The actual term derives from a variant of the Greek term, poiesis, "making" is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and rhythmic qualities of language; such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre-to evoke meanings in addition to, or in place of, the prosaic ostensible meaning.
In any case, poetry has been around for so long; but, it is now hitting the top of its peak because the times are changing and poetry has transformed alongside it.
When you think of poetry, it immediately makes you think of rarefied tomes on dusty bookshelves, po-faced readings with glasses of warm white wine, steamy coffee and a mug of hot coco. For others, it reminded them of a homework on queue that is due a few hours from now, but it shouldn't actually remind you of that.
Nowadays, poetry is exploding in popularity: igniting Instagram, streaming on Spotify, being shared on Twitter and even going viral on YouTube.
Forget the high-brow impenetrability - today's poets are pop-culturally literate, politically engaged, and eye-wateringly candid. The new generation is producing surprising best-selling collections, winning the most prestigious prizes going, and killing it on stage at Glastonbury. Oh, and they're mostly women.
Then there are the Instapoets. Popular as they may be, there's often a certain literary sniffiness about their work; the form demands clarity and brevity, but some veer dangerously close to vapid motivational quotes ("Honour your scars. They are proof you have lived", goes one by Cleo Wade, who's been dubbed the 'Millennial Oprah'). Still, there is no doubt that with celebrity endorsements from the likes of the Kardashians, Bella Hadid and Lena Dunham lending incredible global exposure, poetry is finding its own way to thrive in the scrolling squares and short attention spans of the digital age.
The digital age where most people worship the likes of aesthetic, minimalism and poetry that melts like chocolate in your tongue.
Take for example, the international best-seller Lang Leav, who first made waves on Tumblr and now has 361,000 Instagram followers, credits the simplicity and directness of her work - a marriage of form and (shareable) content) - for its success. Her parents fled the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia to raise Leav in Sydney and growing up there, she became their translator. "I learned very early on to simplify the language and hone it down to the bare essentials. My writing style takes complex emotions and expresses them in a way that connects and resonates with my readers. I believe this is the reason why my work has massive global appeal."
For Lang, anything that gets young people to read poetry should be celebrated. "When my first book Love & Misadventure first appeared in bookstores, I was sitting alongside books by Shakespeare and Poe. Today, there are entire shelves dedicated to contemporary poetry. There is a fresh new wave of poets making a mark in the literary world and inspiring an entire generation."
The love affair of people towards the growing industry of contemporary poetry is blossoming into a garden full of words that are not just pleasing to the eyes, but also pleasing to the ear as well.
