1, lyrical restraint
The essence of poetry is to express emotion, but many writers of modern poetry have abandoned or weakened the straightforward linear lyric to varying degrees and replaced it with introspective secret lyric or polyphonic lyric. There are many ways to control lyricism, which can not only greatly reduce the length and proportion of subjective lyricism, but also make the lyricist invisible or transfer, emphasize the objectification of lyricism and introduce narrative and dramatic techniques. The representative figure in this respect is the English poet Eliot.
2. Analysis of meaning
In other words, the theme of a poem does not have to follow some obvious lyric logic and inevitability to reach a preset destination. It may not be closed, but open, or even take turns; It may not be explained, but presented, even according to the original state of our minds, presenting a "* * * time presentation" that is actually closer to the truth. The American poet Ashbury went furthest in this direction.
3. Make poetry more modern.
The essence of so-called "modernity" is that harmony gives way to contradictions and conflicts. This kind of contradiction and conflict occurs not only in history, politics and culture, but also in life and psychology. As for the reason, of course, it is the modern people who pay attention to, explore and express the spiritual world of modern people, and also provide them with the comfort they need.
Therefore, the absurdity, loneliness and alienation that individuals feel when they meet the world have become a common theme in poetry, and Austrian poet Rilke is an expert in expressing this theme.
4. Reaction to time
As a language art, poetry is different from plastic arts such as painting, sculpture and architecture. "Time" is its potential eternal theme, including the deformation of time, such as historical changes, natural changes, human joys and sorrows, and so on. Many poets, such as Irish poet Ye Zhi and Argentine poet Borges, respond to time with different "sound quality" and "pitch".
5. Inheritance and transformation of poetic forms.
Like China's classical poetry, European and American poetry, as the mainstream of world poetry, also has strict metrical requirements and restrictions in the classical era, and has rules to follow in terms of rhythm, pace and rhyme. Modern poetry that adapts to the content of modern life emphasizes innovation, and freestyle poetry that is not written according to the rules becomes a grand view.
But in fact, the tradition has not been broken, and modern poetry has been looking for a balance between inheritance and innovation. Even if it is a free verse without rhyme, its internal rhythm and rhythm are quite obvious, otherwise it is not a poem. Poets have different choices. American poet Frost completely inherited the traditional form, British poet Auden added many modern elements to the inheritance, and Israeli poet Amihai completely used free body.
6. Purification of poetic language
Generally speaking, traditional poetry tends to use elegant language, and the words marked "[poem]" we see in some dictionaries are the special language of poetry.
Modern poetry basically no longer uses this "ungrounded" language on a large scale, but uses everyday language and even spoken language. It does not seek exaggeration or exaggeration, but pays more attention to the expressive force of language, that is, accuracy and precision. Some poets even remove all the decorative elements from their works, such as the Greek poet Cavafis.
7. Wide application of images.
Image is not a simple image, it is both external and internal, and it is the integration of reason and sensibility in an instant. At this moment, heaven and earth are integrated, just like meditation or epiphany in Buddhism, and poetry is also the strongest, as in the Swedish poet Trondstrom. Some images appear repeatedly in the works of some poets, and even become the core images, such as the Greek poet Egri Tis.
8. Integrate personal experiences into common feelings.
In modern poetry creation, individual experience and feelings are not only the trigger point for poetry to move towards universal human emotions, but also the theme and destination of poetry. This is because universal emotion is the collection and refinement of individual experience, and the two are not "inconsistent".
In other words, life is poetry. So you will have such a magical reading experience, that is, a poem is about a person, a place, a little thing you don't know, but it won't make you feel strange, but it will make you feel kind and moved. The Irish poet Sydney did this most thoroughly.
9, the use of irony and banter.
Modern poetry not only has a single dimension of "touching" or "rationality", but also can be interesting and joyful, even when dealing with serious themes and emotions, such as sadness and despair. So when it appeals to humor, irony, banter and self-mockery, it will naturally make you smile. Polish poet Sin Posca and Russian-American poet Brodsky often use this technique.
10, discuss poetry with poetry
Poets of modern poetry often discuss how to write poetry in one way or another and what is the essence of poetry, that is, taking the art of poetry as the theme. This is a very interesting phenomenon, which is rare in other art forms. This is also due to the characteristics of poetry itself, that is, the fact that it is an art of language and needs to convey as much information as possible in a limited space itself contains strong poetry.