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“It is difficult to get the news from poems

yet men die miserably every day

for lack

of what is found there.”

-Asphodel, That Greeny Flower

Why do we look to poems? Not for news, as Williams seems to suggest in ‘Asphodel, That Greeny Flower’. What do we lack that we seek in poems; what is it in us that is drawn, always, to that which we cannot fully explain or understand? In short, what is a poem? Man has used poetry for beauty, direction, reassurance, hope, expression- but still he is no closer to being able to describe what it is that lends a poem its inexpressible grace and elegance. All of us yearn for some kind of poetry in our lives, but the loveliness of poetry is that we see it in different forms- in maths, in music, in nature, in God. Though some may scorn poetry in its literary form, the truth is, we all have a predilection for poems, even if we do not see it ourselves.

In my opinion, the fundamental point of poetry is that it plays on thoughts and feelings which are an inextricable part of the human experience. A good poem shares unabashedly with the reader the emotions of the poet, yet also includes the reader in its stream of consciousness. How strange it is that we should seek uniqueness, when it is togetherness that we truly desire. All we want to feel is that someone else feels the same way, and that if we are lonely, it is not our loneliness, but rather the loneliness of time. Ultimately, we want to be reassured that this too shall pass. Poetry tells us this. It comforts us in our sadness, it adds to our joys, and when we do not want to be cured of our miseries, at least it paints a prettier picture of them so that we may delight in the elegiac quality of our own travesties, so that we feel, perhaps, that our grief, too, is beautiful in its own way. In its greatest form, poetry is a constant companion to us. One is reminded of the Pablo Neruda poem which begins with the consoling line, “ In these lonely regions I have been powerful…” . What gives one that power? Perhaps something as simple and delicate as a line from a beloved poem; the knowledge that, even in these lonely regions, there is beauty- if that is what one accepts poetry is- and that one is never truly alone. The truth of poetry is that we can never be alone once we have read it- and that in itself is something marvellous to behold.

There is neither a conclusion nor an ultimate point to make on this topic. I encourage everyone to read poetry, and to decide for themselves what it is; there are no wrong answers. Perhaps you will not see poetry as a thing of beauty, necessarily; perhaps that is not its function. Shelley once noted that poets are “the unacknowledged legislators of the world." Delusions of grandeur, a cynic might say, as he wryly notes that Shelley, too, was a poet. I, too, once dismissed this view, as I believe firmly that the aim of poetry is not to influence politics, nor to bring governments and countries to their knees; we have enough of such literature in the world without the taint of the political sphere entering the world of poems as well. But was Shelley really talking about such ‘legislation’? The dictionary simply defines legislation as “laws”, and one may immediately associate legislature with the government, and laws of society. However, in a deeper sense, there are other laws; laws of the heart and of human nature; the laws that all of mankind is bound to obey, not because of societal convention, but because of a deeper instinctual pull which poets perhaps understand more thoroughly. Poets may not create this legislation, but they write it, and in their writing, we, the readers of their laws, understand more about ourselves and the human condition. Ultimately, we read poetry because poetry appeals to us. We read poetry to learn about ourselves, and to listen to the legislation which we have forgotten, but which poets have kept alive in their words. As one of my favourite poems notes, “I learn by going where I have to go.” Similarly with poetry, I learn by reading where I have to go, and what I have to do. Not all poetry is meant as legislation. Not all poetry can guide us through times of despair. But sometimes , a poem is enough to make you feel as though you, too, have travelled, and have experienced things beyond the scope of your existence. Is this legislation? A road map of sorts? A comfort? All of these things, and more: this is a poem.

Final Destination 5 is a film for those of you who enjoy gore, nail-biting suspense, and also have that little part of you that loves a bit of schadenfreude.

The basis of the story is the same as ever, people escape death, and death comes to find them. The film begins with the introduction of 8 fairly tedious characters as they share some poorly written and dull dialogue before they embark on a bus journey that will change their lives.

As usual Final Destination 5 manages to find new amusing and sick ways to kill off the characters, some were fast, some were drawn out with so many possibilities that the audience didn’t know what to expect. Humour played a large part in releasing the tension as the audience sat and laughed, along with a sigh of relief, when the characters finally did meet their makers.

The director has managed to create some characters so slimy and irritating that you want them to die and watching their demise becomes all the more enjoyable. However the characters that the audience is meant to want to survive, become equally dislikeable, as they are so boring! Whoever told the production team for FD5 that more scenes of crying and love were needed was wrong!

The film is totally what you would expect. Repetitive, gory and tense. In that respect the FD5 team have done their job but not much else. It may be the case that the most basic production values were left for granted as the FD5 team focused on making the 3-D experience as high quality as the many other competitors in their market.

However, I did leave the cinema happy, happy to not be being chased by death and happy that I’d got the full “Scary Movie Experience.”

If you fancy a fright and a laugh go ahead and try out Final Destination 5 for yourself! Oh and I dare you to watch it in 3-D!