The persona is not the poet in poetry

Image source: writingcooperative.com

It’s not uncommon in poetry classes for students to equate the poet with the speaker or persona of the poem. But this shouldn’t be condoned. When, for example, Pablo Neruda says that “tonight I write the saddest lines,” it doesn’t have to be Neruda himself feeling the said sentiment.


The duty of poets is to make readers feel the poem, not just feel bad or good for the writer. The emotions being conveyed by poetry should be devoid of authorial intrusion. Sympathy is not as important in literature as empathy, of putting oneself in another’s shoes. And accomplished writers are guided by this quiet distance from their own work.


Often than not, those beginning to analyze poems think a poem with an I persona means that the narrative of poem happened to the poet in real life. But we must remember that poetry’s online instrument is language, and often their duty compels them to embellish narratives to heighten language. It’s not as though we’re saying that poets are necessarily liars, but poems aspiring for literariness don’t aim to capture truth per se, but to reach verisimilitude, a semblance of the true.

Image source: slideplayer.com

Again, not all poems are biographical in nature, even when we read works by confessional poets like Sylvia Plath. Much negotiation happens with language to make the poems not just elaborate, exposed diary entries but works we can truly relate to. Poems after all, according to the Neruda-inspired film Il Postino, “belong not to those who write it, but to those who need it.”


Hey, what’s up? My name is John Eilermann, a Comparative Literature major based in St. Louis, Missouri. Long before I knew that I wanted to pursue a career in this field, I’d already decided to become a lifelong learner. Comparative literature provides me with many multidisciplinary approaches. Follow me on Facebook for more writing tips and insights.