What really
is the use
of stanzas that seduce
with a guise of meaning, but are actually obtuse?

They promise direction
but upon closer inspection
are mere self-exploration,
requiring the poet’s explanation,
which is generally withheld, sustaining the obfuscation.

Poetry should propound, not confound.
be accessible, not unintelligible.

I like poetry to be…
for gleeful linguistic discovery
of things of verity,
for profundity and perspicuity,
perhaps armed with a dictionary, to expand the vocabulary.

I think it should propound; it should not confound.

I prefer when poets avoid emotive words devoid of substance.
(This is just a preference,
like a penchant for rhyme.
But on that one, I’m
still working on my patience.)