The act of memorizing a poem is a lost art. How to organize a group for postarity, fun, and learning.
The practice of poetry memorization is rapidly becoming a lost art. In the Victorian Days, poetry recitals were a popular form of entertainment. Whether the object was to woo women, win prizes or merely entertain, poetry memorization was an integral part of recreation in generations past. With the advent of radio and television, we have relied less on our peers for entertainment and instead have trusted in Hollywood to fill the bill. Too much reliance on the media to entertain us can be dangerous because we can fail to be challenged mentally and can miss out on valuable interactions that could otherwise enrich our life. Not only can poetry recital parties enhance your social life, they can also improve your memory, increase your vocabulary and help you to become more expressive and contemplative and gain a better appreciation of life.
The object of a poetry group is for like-minded people to get together for an evening and aid one another in committing a poem to memory. To find participants, you can first look within your circle of friends. If you share a love of literature then sharing poetry will be a small leap. If you can find no interest among your friends then you can put up small posters in your local library or bookstore (with permission) advertising your desire to start up a poetry memorization group. I would recommend limiting the numbers in your group to no more then six people to start. Intimate groups work best because there are less distractions and more time can be devoted to each individual for memorization help. Before the first meeting takes place, you will have to decide on the poem or genre you will work on. It is probably best to have the group as a whole make the ultimate decision but you can narrow the field by choosing an era or poet before hand, such as Shakespearean sonnets or The Victorian poets. At the first meeting you must be prepared to provide each attendee with their own copy of the work to memorize. If you wish, you can request each member bring a poetry book and at the first meeting all can offer up suggestions to which poem shall be studied and then elect one member of the group to act as secretary, producing copies of the poem for the next meeting.
Once all members have their own copy of the poem, you can begin. The chairperson will begin by reading aloud the first line or two (depending on the collective group's confidence and skill level). Then in round robin fashion, each member shall place their poem face down on their lap and attempt to repeat the first stanza. When each member has had a turn the group shall move on to the next line or stanza. Continue in a round robin fashion until each person can recite the first four lines of the poem perfectly. In general, the group should proceed at the skill level of the weakest person so as not to be discouraging. Remember this is for fun and character building, it is not meant to be a competition but a personal challenge. Depending on the length of the poem you will need to hold several meetings before a poem can be fully committed to memory. This can take anywhere from a few consecutive weeks to several months. Each member is encouraged to take the poem home and study it throughout the week. Ideally the group can meet bi-weekly or even once per month.
Choose a meeting place that is convenient to all, and relatively quiet with few distractions. A private home is nice but for a change why not meet at the beach, in the forest, at an out of the way coffee shop or be adventurous and hike to a secluded spot. For the ultimate experience, why not choose a spot that reflects the theme of the poem. For instance the poem Ozymandius by Shelly where he speaks of an ancient ruin laying in the desert, would best be suited to recital on a beach. Or the poem The Lady of Shallot by Tennyson could be memorized by a river. Have fun and use your imagination to come up with spots that evoke feelings of passion in the soul. No poetry group would be complete without refreshments. A glass of wine or two is beneficial for loosening the lips for poetic words to flow, but anything more then that will dull the mind. If offering food, choose luscious fruits, rich meats and cheeses or exotic breads. Remember poetry is an outflow of human emotion and the food should be selected to complement this.
Once the collective group has memorized the poem in it's entirety, each member will stand before the group and recite the poem. Depending on how formal or informal your group is, you can choose to make it a spectacular performance or simply an on the spot recital. Once all members have passed their recital you are then ready to select the next poem. The purpose of poetry memorization is to commit poems to memory for life, so have past poems recalled often. You can even have one night designated as poetry revival night. Write out all the names of past memorized poems on slips of paper. Each member is to draw a poem and recite it on the spot. If you choose to, you can award small prizes or certificates to ones who are able to recite their poem perfectly without mistakes or hesitation.
If you are not familiar with where to find poetry, you can browse used bookstores for discarded copies of English Literature textbooks. Once you are familiar with the more popular poets you can start looking for volumes of their works. Also the staff at the bookstore should be able to point you in the right direction. Finding good poetry worthy of memorization is a lifelong work. If you inquire among friends and group members, you will find some good material you will carry with you for the rest of your life. If you take the time to form a poetry memorization group, you will only stand to benefit and will forge strong friendships in the process.
