Love in Contemporary Love Poetry

Love is at the heart of contemporary love poetry, although there are critics who would deny that reality, partly because they do not,  or cannot see or perceive love in what has been written by contemporary love poets, or at different times in their own lives.

The different manifestations of love in a vast array of contemporary love poetry may leave the critic wondering what love truly is. Can it be defined at all? Which definition is the most appropriate and accurate for all eras, or any specific era?

Even though love is a complete whole, the full scope of love is so broad and complex in nature that man can only comprehend it in part during his lifetime. Perhaps this is where the role of the contemporary love poet comes into play.

In each era, the aware contemporary love poet writes about his or her own understanding of the concept of love.

Since true contemporary love poetry lives on from era to era in the hearts and minds of contemporary love poets, as well as in the words of their critics and others, the scope of understanding with respect to the potential  comprehension of the whole of love continues to expand too.

One cannot under-estimate the potency of love and the importance of its role in the history of humankind, as revealed in contemporary love poetry.

Love and reality walk through the course of history together. Love is contingent upon reality and reality dependent upon the perception of the moment.

As that moment in time passes, reality becomes increasingly transparent in its nature and thus the contemporary love poetry of any era can be questioned with respect to the reality in his or her poetic discourse.

Contemporary love poets write about what they love and what is real to them, at any particular moment in time. That same love may be passed on from era to era by readers and critics alike. At times, it may be regarded as an expression of non-love, which in itself is just another aspect of the larger whole, an understanding of love that includes both the positive and the negative, versus just one or the other.

It also includes both the human and the divine understanding of love. One cannot discount the love of the beauty of nature, or the love inherent in poetic writing about human passion in a positive and negative light of discovery.

This barely touches upon the topic of love as it pertains to contemporary poetry in any era, or all eras regarded as the whole of contemporary love poetry. In no way does it attempt to summarize the nature of man from the beginning of time, although it may portray him in different eras. At times, it may seem to be an attempt to resolve the question of justice by creating an ongoing awareness of others.