In April, Joy Carino, a junior at Mississippi School for Math and Science from Starkville, will travel to Washington, D.C., to represent Mississippi in the national Poetry Out Loud competition.
We congratulate Carino, who is making her second trip to the national competition as Mississippi’s champion and are comforted to know that at a time when much attention has been given to improving our children’s aptitude for math, science and technology, there are still those who value the study of language and the power and beauty of literature, art and music — the fine arts, as they are called.
Poetry Out Loud, a joint venture by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, is now in its 10th year.
Competitors commit poems of their choosing to memory and recite them before an audience. Competitors are judged on their delivery. The purpose of the contest is to encourage our youth to learn about great poetry through memorization and recitation. It also helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence and learn about our literary heritage.
Poetry is as old as language itself and has evolved over the ages. It manifests itself differently with each generation. Today, the most common expression of poetry is found in music. The Whitmans and Frosts of yesterday are the songwriters of today. Dylan Thomas gave way Bob Dylan who preceded the street poets of today.
Poetry is, at its best, a paradox – deeply personal and yet powerfully universal. It gives voice to emotions, expresses ideas, illuminates and exposes. To roughly paraphrase G.K. Chesterton on the subject, a poet is content to have his head in the heavens while a scientist seeks to have the heavens in his head. Both are important. Science attempts to tell us what is, while a poet strives to make sense of what it means.
For the student, the study of poetry builds language skills, helps us communicate effectively and nourishes critical thinking. Those who can articulate their ideas clearly and convincingly have a decided advantage over those who cannot.
As Mississippians, we are rightfully proud of our state’s astonishing literary and musical heritage. It is poetry that provides the common thread among such seemingly disparate figures as Eudora Welty and B.B. King, William Faulkner and Muddy Waters, Tennessee Williams and Jimmie Rodgers.
We wish Carino every success on her trip to Washington. We hope her experience inspires other young people to explore the world of words and poetry.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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