Science or Art, IP, abab Options

[jgdittier]

Is poetry a science or an art,
its form an inmate's solitary state,
enchained by prose's flavor, naught but tart,
encased in walls of brick or solid slate?

When wisdom rules as commeth forth from mind;
if crystal hard, a mold, no choice allows.
Behold, we've verse of scientific kind,
less choice for guffaws, nor for laughs and howls.

If verse is art, the poet then is free
to entertain us any way his muse
can choose, like Charlie on "Berg's" knee,
and none of Milton's methods man may lose.

May bards e'er be the forces to elate,
humanity's approach to verse, sublime
and pray our minds we vow to never sate
and lose these joys we nurse with beat and rhyme.

note "Berg's" =Edgar Bergin, ventriloquist/humorist,
Charlie McCarthy was his dummy

[jgdittier]

Dear James,
I fear all this chatter may alienate Cleo, for whom I have highest regard, so will comment here and then let this thread unravel.

I have not your "fast fingers" only one slow finger with a high error ratio.

I've read the entire thread under "The Times, They Are  A-Changing".
I think I learned alot just now and would like to sate your interest
re my style of R&R. Without writing a treatise, perhaps I can define it as R&R with these additions/subtractions:
Whatever I write, whether light or serious, is written in a light style often exaggerating the degree of poetic license others, of modern style or yore, consider good practice.
The excess of poetic license is intended to appeal to those who
appreciate light verse usually ending with a smile rather than those
who prefer their poetry to elate them or please them with its beauty and perfection and adherence to current fashion.
Although I write in the style annoted above, I intend for my result to be more like that of Edgar Guest than of John Milton. I try seriously to make my writing enjoyable and do not let text-book conventions get in my way.

We have exchanged much thought and hopefully shared our comments with others here. I don't think our comments qualified as a debate, rather an explanation that makes us better known to all the rest and now I can go back to Homer's!

Cheers,     jgd