October 15, 2003 Culture ¢ the other press ©

Poetry/Fiction/Essays/etc.

 

Licence Suspended

Poetic Licence, as defined by the Nelson
Canadian Dictionary, is “the freedom to devi-
ate from fact, form or rule by a‘writer for
the sake of the effect gained.” Conventions of
writing can be sacrificed to varying degrees
to carry the writer’s message to his reader.
But how much manipulation of writing conven-
tions will the reader tolerate before the
writer and his message lose all integrity? A
writer’ s freedom to use poetic licence has a
cost, especially if the writer’s genre is one
that, does not tolerate excessive ereativeness.

Poetic license cost New York Times columnist,
Jayson Blair; his job and, more importantly,
his integrity as a journalist. As a writer of
observation pieces on Middle American life, he
was expected to use some poetic licence in the
re-telling of,,his experiences. The reader
allowed him some»leeway in the. use of descrip-
tive language for bringing a character to

tive use of poetic licence, unlike the freedom
afforded a creative writer.

Writers of poetry, short stories, and novels
thrive on poetic licence. Their writing comes
alive through the manipulation of form, rules,
and fact. Characterization can. be achieved by
breaking grammar conventions. Poets break
grammatical rules to make an impact with sen-
tence fragments. Without deviation from fact,
a writer would not be able. to make a story
relevant to his message. The writer adds sce-
narios, dialogue, and conflicts that are
invented for the, sole purpose of getting a
message across to the reader. The reader is
aware of the necessity of poetic licence in
these genres; the author loses no integrity,
but earns respect for ingenuity.

An artist needs licence to create a work that
is true to his vision, licence being the free-
dom an artist has to take inspiration from

life. Blair was allowed to edit the facts of everyday occurrences and make them more than
his observations so relevant issues were “everyday.” It is an elevator ride from the
brought. to the forefront. The form could be an basement of rules, form, and fact, to the

essay, a journal, or a “Q and A” session. He upper levels of disregard for form, conven-

could embellish the story with a well-turned tion, and veracity that will lead a writer to
phrase, or place emphasis where he saw fit, in the lofty office of poetic licence. This is
order to emphasize the relevance of his piece. the space every writer believes is his right-

But overall, the reader expected a journal-
ist’s writing to be based primarily on fact,
not..f1Ctren,

This was not the case. It was proven that
some of the details had sprung from the fer-
tilevming@ of Mr. Blair,” and not..from field
research. He had duped readers, who believed
they were getting a true account of what had
actually occurred. Mr. Blair traded his ethics
and integrity for carte blanche use of poetic
licence. Journalism needs to be rooted in
facts and not in deviations thereof. The genre by Oriana Evans
demands and the reader expects—a more restric-

ful perch while creating work for his readers.

However, a writer must be aware of the
restriction of certain genres before taking a
seat in the office of Poetic Licence. If he
has not done Careful research on the best-
suited genre for his message and reader expec-
tationsS;.3t’edtld cost him a lotmore than a
trip to the basement.

 

 

 

Hissy Fit

He is a cold blooded killer

Looking for the ultimate thriller

While. he continously wringles his scales
He Relates the same tales

He will bore you to death

He is The Green Mamba

Leader of the snake pit

by Anonymous

 

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