Are Poets Philosophers?

thewonder August 06, 2019 at 21:41 1025 views 2 comments

I had someone tell me that their favorite philosopher was Charles Baudelaire one time and I still can't quite tell as to whether or not it offended or excited my intellect. I'm not entirely sure that they knew that Charles Baudelaire was a poet or that that should matter. Why shouldn't you think of Baudelaire as a philosopher?

I feel like poets often express what is sought in Philosophy better than philosophers do. Perhaps the medium is just too limiting and Philosophy should be written as experimental poetry.

Comments (2)

Drazjan August 07, 2019 at 08:46 #313840 0 likes

I am not going to make that judgement. I do feel that some of the best poetry has a philosophical element, and one good trait is that poetry needs to be concise, something a lot of philosophers could benefit from.

thewonder August 07, 2019 at 18:24 #313924 0 likes

Reply to Drazjan Oh, I agree wholeheartedly. If you do have a really good point, then, you ought to learn how to get it across in a manner that can be easily understood by all. There is something to be said for rambling, though.

I guess I feel like I almost take more from succinct phrases in poems than I do from Philosophical text. The whole world can be discovered through a simple phrase.

Not everything can be expresses laconicly, though.