Counting Crow's "Anna Begins" Poetic Content

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The Poetic Content of "Anna Begins"

The song "Anna Begins" by Counting Crows is an example of modern day poetry and is in agreement with the oral poetic tradition of our culture's artistic history and present state. The numerous emotions conveyed by the literary text are proof of its poetic relevance. "Anna Begins" is a poetic piece as viewed or analyzed by a contemporary audience. "Anna Begins" is identifiable to any audience, making it an example of poetry. If a song can reach out and touch upon the listeners emotions, than it should be considered an example of modern day poetry.

To define a literary or oral poetic text as indeed being poetry, a definition of poetry itself must foremost be established. Poetry, as a categorization of literature is defined by several ineffable factors which therefore make labeling a universal definition troublesome. Robert Frost offers the following definition of poetry: "A poem begins with a lump in the throat, a home-sickness or a love-sickness.

It is a reaching-out toward expression; an effort to find fulfillment. A complete poem is one where the emotion has found its thought and the thought has found the words." (Frost 1)

Frost enumerates the elusive qualities of poetry in his first line. The remainder of the passage refers to the connection between emotion and words. When examining the following definition in application to Counting Crows' "Anna Begins" it is clear that the definition allows the inclusion of the piece within the categorical realm of poetry. It is their ability to articulate emotion as deeply as they do that sustains the Counting Crows. Their lyrics are a combination of symbolism, allusions, and other literary devices that articulate emotion, perhaps the richest of them being "Anna Begins."

When analyzing the text of "Anna Begins" it...