Instapoetry
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Instapoetry is a style of written
poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...
that emerged after the advent of
social media Social media are interactive technologies that facilitate the Content creation, creation, information exchange, sharing and news aggregator, aggregation of Content (media), content (such as ideas, interests, and other forms of expression) amongs ...
, especially on
Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...
. The term has been used to describe poems written specifically for being shared online, most commonly on Instagram, but also other platforms including
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
,
Tumblr Tumblr (pronounced "tumbler") is a microblogging and Social networking service, social networking website founded by David Karp in 2007 and is owned by American company Automattic. The service allows users to post multimedia and other content ...
, and
TikTok TikTok, known in mainland China and Hong Kong as Douyin (), is a social media and Short-form content, short-form online video platform owned by Chinese Internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which may range in duration f ...
. The style usually consists of short, direct lines in aesthetically pleasing fonts that are sometimes accompanied by an image or drawing, often without rhyme schemes or meter, and dealing with commonplace themes. Literary critics, poets, and writers have contended with Instapoetry's focus on brevity and plainness compared to traditional poetry, criticizing it for reproducing rather than subverting normative ideas on social media platforms that favor popularity and accessibility over craft and depth.


History

Instapoetry developed as a result of young, amateur poets sharing their output to expand their readership, who began using social media as their preferred method of distribution rather than traditional publishing methods. The term "instapoetry" was created by other writers trying to define and understand the new extension of instant poetry shared via social media, most prominently Instagram. In its most basic form, Instapoetry usually consists of bite-sized verses that consider political and social subjects such as immigration, domestic violence, sexual assault, love, culture, feminism, gun violence, war, racism,
LGBTQ LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, Gay men, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning (sexuality and gender), questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, Asexuality, asexual, ...
rights, and other
social justice Social justice is justice in relation to the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society where individuals' rights are recognized and protected. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has of ...
topics. All of these elements are usually made to fit social media feeds that are easily accessible through applications on
smartphone A smartphone is a mobile phone with advanced computing capabilities. It typically has a touchscreen interface, allowing users to access a wide range of applications and services, such as web browsing, email, and social media, as well as multi ...
s.


Scholarship

Despite the diversity of poetry on Instagram, the Brazilian linguist Bruna Osaki Fazano found that shared "aspects of the compositional form, theme and style" mean that it can be understood as a specific genre. Writing in ''
Poetics Today ''Poetics Today: International Journal for Theory and Analysis of Literature and Communication'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal in the field of poetics. The editors-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chi ...
'', JuEunhae Knox combined quantitative and qualitative analysis to show that Instapoetry is a cohesive genre, in part because "the sheer volume and rapidity of content production in turn encourages posts that are not only visually appealing but also immediately recognizable as Instapoems". Instapoetry has been seen as a practice that serves as a form of self-staging for poets and "
rafts A raft is any flat structure for support or transportation over water. It is usually of basic design, characterized by the absence of a hull. Rafts are usually kept afloat by using any combination of buoyant materials such as wood, sealed barrel ...
authenticity". describes the work of Norwegian poet as appearing to offer a "simple, almost direct access to the inner self". Vassenden writes that poems such as Rupi Kaur's "if you are not enough for yourself / you will never be enough / for someone else" are "authentic" to such an extent that they are not literary. Scholars have also studied the work of specific Instapoets, such as
Rupi Kaur Rupi Kaur (Punjabi language, Punjabi: ਰੂਪੀ ਕੌਰ; born 4 October 1992) is an Indian people, Indian poet, illustrator, photographer, and author. Born in Punjab, India, Punjab, India, Kaur immigrated to Canada at a young age with her f ...
, R.M. Drake,
Aja Monet Aja Monet Bacquie ( ; sometimes stylized in all lowercase) is an American contemporary poet, writer, lyricist and activist based in Los Angeles, California. Early life Monet was raised in East New York, Brooklyn. She began writing poetry at a ...
, Yrsa Daley-Ward,
Nayyirah Waheed Nayyirah Waheed is a writer and artist who has published two books of poetry and has been described as "perhaps the most famous poet on Instagram." While Waheed is a reclusive writer who doesn't reveal many details about her life, her poetry is fr ...
, Atticus,
Nikita Gill Nikita Gill is an Irish-Indian poet, playwright, writer and illustrator based in south England. She has written and curated eight volumes of poetry and is one of the most followed poets on Instagram. Life Gill was born in Belfast to Indian pa ...
and .


Overview

Academics have shown appreciation for the way in which Instapoetry has stimulated interest in poetry in general. Meanwhile, it has been argued that since Instapoets avoid critical evaluations, academics, and the publishing industry, Instapoets qualify more as online celebrities than literary figures. Additionally, although Instapoetry has been characterized as anti-establishment, Alyson Miller noted traditional or even conservative views in the online posts of Instapoets in contrast with the activist views the style is associated with, and that there is a contradiction between "the extra-textual commentary surrounding Instapoetry, particularly by way of interviews and artistic statements, and the content of works which repeatedly reinscribe conservative, patriarchal, and heteronormative worldviews". Thom Young, a poet and high school English teacher, created a
parody A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satire, satirical or irony, ironic imitation. Often its subject is an Originality, original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, e ...
Instagram page as a way to mock Instapoets and their work, describing it as " fidget-spinner poetry. Like they're just scrolling on their devices, to read something instantly, while the libraries are empty. I think people today don't want to read anything that causes a whole lot of critical thinking." According to Johnathan Ford's piece in the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...
'', as Instagram's algorithms have limited prospective Instapoets' reach-per-post, it has pushed them to pay to promote their material. Popular Instagram accounts will be promoted to the front of users' feeds, with the app's algorithm, in the view of critics, favoring the spread of bland, inauthentic, or clichéd content while preventing disciplined poetry from reaching new audiences.


Writers described as Instapoets

*
Rupi Kaur Rupi Kaur (Punjabi language, Punjabi: ਰੂਪੀ ਕੌਰ; born 4 October 1992) is an Indian people, Indian poet, illustrator, photographer, and author. Born in Punjab, India, Punjab, India, Kaur immigrated to Canada at a young age with her f ...
* Atticus * Amanda Lovelace * Tyler Knott Gregson * Najwa Zebian * Lang Leav *
Nikita Gill Nikita Gill is an Irish-Indian poet, playwright, writer and illustrator based in south England. She has written and curated eight volumes of poetry and is one of the most followed poets on Instagram. Life Gill was born in Belfast to Indian pa ...
*
Upile Chisala Upile Chisala (born 1994) is a poet from Malawi. She prefers the term "storyteller." She is considered an Instapoet. She is often considered to belong to Malawi's third generation of writers. She has won numerous awards, including Forbes Africa' ...
* Donna Ashworth * Trista Mateer


See also

*
Hashtag activism Hashtag activism refers to the use of social media hashtags for Internet activism. The hashtag has become one of the many ways that social media contributes to civic engagement and social movements. The use of the hashtag on social media provides ...
*
Virtue signalling Virtue signalling is the act of expressing opinions or stances that align with popular moral values, often through social media, with the intent of demonstrating one's good character. The term ''virtue signalling'' is frequently used pejorativel ...


References

{{reflist, 2


External links


Meet Rupi Kaur, Queen of the ‘Instapoets’
Rolling Stone (magazine) ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known ...
(December 2017)
NidaMahmoed - Instaquotes: give peace a chance
Vogue Mexico
Vogue México y Latinoamérica ''Vogue México y Latinoamérica'' is a Mexican/Latin American fashion magazine which is an offshoot of the American '' Vogue'' magazine. The magazine is published by ''Condé Nast Mexico y Latinoamérica''. The magazine is published in Mexico as ' ...
(July 2016) Genres of poetry Social media * Genres of electronic literature