By: Marium Shaikh, Reporter

Once again, students from all over the United States and Canada are beginning to take part in an annual poetry competition called Poetry Out Loud. The purpose of this contest is to encourage the nation’s youth to engage in poetry through memorization and recitation. This event is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation.

Poetry is an art form in which human language is used for its aesthetic qualities in addition to linguistic content. Poetry consists mostly of oral and literary works in which language is used in a manner that is felt by its poet and audience to differ from the ordinary. Many times poetry is used to convey emotions or ideas from the poet to listener’s mind.

Sophomore Ruposhi Quddus says, I enjoy poetry because “the meaning and beat seem to attract me the most, it’s the words that bring emotion—humorous poetry cheers me up.”

Poetry is beneficial in many ways: it improves verbal skills, memory, and critical thinking. The use of poetry helps readers develop empathy and insight by triggering memories and emotions; it also encourages readers and writers to engage in other forms of art such as music and dance.

Junior Julian Millian has a passionate feeling for poetry. He likes how poetry can guide a person emotionally. One of his favorite poets is Edgar Allen Poe; Millian feels that Poe’s work is pretty interesting.

The contest includes several rules that must be followed: competitors must be students enrolled in high school, and be a citizen of their respected country. Competitors must choose three poems from the approved list to perform at the state level; one must be 25 lines or fewer, the other must be written before the 20th century, and the third poem may be one written by the competitor. It is important to carefully select each poem, as the poems may not be switched once they are given to the competition organizers.

Reading, writing, and reciting poetry all have many benefits, one of which is the ability to give a person a voice. For some people who are unable to find their true selves, poetry gives them the ability to do so. Poetry extends imagination and lets us dream the impossible, and allows us the ability to communicate in an effective way.

In the words of English teacher Mrs. Kelly Mehal, “Poetry is art and art is life.”