Shake the Dust (Spoken Poetry)

The following links are my favorite spoken word poets. Spoken word poetry is a something that is sparking interests again but most forget that this is how most stories and language were told and passed on. Old English and Middle English literature became a major movement of epic poetry performed out loud. The Anglo-Saxon time frame brought many oral traditions such as biblical sermons, epic poetry such as the heroic poem Beowulf, and biblical paraphrases such as The Lord’s Prayer. Back then this was the norm. It did not have a specific title, or people did not expect a standing ovation when finished. This is how people were educated and entertained. Now we call it Spoken Word Poetry. Spoken word poetry refers to works or performances that consist solely or mostly of one person speaking as if naturally, but yet most tend to have a musical tone to them. Spoken word poetry really came onto a modern map is when spoken word became more correlated to narration or speaking as the person would in conversation, as shown in the song "Everybody's Free (to Wear Sunscreen)" by Baz Luhrmann. As they became more popular, spoken word poetry became an outlet for those who wrote poetry and created a way to express it. I really enjoy the fact that all the poem I have came across are topics or discusses material that seem to jump off the page and hits the emotions of any person. Not only does it entertain, but it also informs, educates and inspires. What I really like is the difference between the two poets is how they perform their work. For example: Shake the Dust by Anis Mojgani rarely every speaks with his hands unless he is really making a point or he has come to the highest, most intense moment in the poem. On the other hand, Sarah Kay’s If I Should Have a Daughter is more theatrical and motions and defines each verse with her body. It is when she stands still and speaks slower is when the poem becomes more intense. In both videos, they discuss that their writing is a piece of themselves like a body part. Their writing is a part of themselves that becomes gifts to the world that are to shape how people think. During the times of epic poetry, again, their works were parts of themselves but as our professor said in class, the authors were using it to shape literature. In the end, all poetry will be remembered by someone. Words, spoken, written, performed or all three affect someone.