For me, this is the basic distinction between sentimental and sentiment:
Quote:
Originally posted by Charles Albert:
If a poet hasn't taken me to the same emotional intensity that he is expressing, then I call the piece sentimental.
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Of course, the way to get there isn't easy to find. When working on my poem "The Red Jacket" I had to chop off many sentimental parts to try to find the honest core. The problem for me was that the only thing I had to go on that was "real" was the feeling I felt in my dream when I tried the jacket on and it was too small.
But poets don't have to personally feel the thing they are writing about - but they have to feel strongly about the subject and be able to observe with a keen eye and empathy. Without that, I don't think any poet can bring their readers to that level of emotional intensity.
The link to the thread from the alt.arts.poetry.comments newsgroup (here or somewhere else on these boards) was excellent and enlightening for me. I suggest it be looked at by all new and experienced poets.
(Thanks for this thread, people - I'm enjoying it very much.)
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One person's opinion.
Davida Chazan