Poetry By Heart – reflections on new, reactionary ‘revolutions’ in poetry

So the UK government’s Department of Education (DfE) have given “£500,000 of funding to The Poetry Archive to develop and run the National Poetry Competition as part of its commitment to help bring poetry to life in schools.”[1]  The competition is called ‘Poetry by Heart’ and, says DfE, it aims to “promote understanding of poetry as a dynamic art form and enable pupils to develop self-confidence and creative understanding” and to teach the “skills of memorisation and performance.” Of course, “memorisation” appeals to Tory heartlands. It is resonant of the kind of old-fashioned teaching which reactionaries feel that the mythical ‘PC Brigade’ have outlawed.