Micro Poetry

What is Micro Poetry?

Micropoetry (a term sometimes offered as two terms) is an ultra-short form of poetry, typically under 25 words or 140 characters, blending creative brevity with precise language characterized by sharp imagery and emotional depth while allowing diverse interpretations.  (Definition found at this website.)

Both mathematics and poetry are condensed languages, endeavoring to say much in a few words or symbols and so, when I recently came across the term "Micropoetry' -- aka micro-poetry or micropoetry -- I became curious (and I thought of Haiku) and I decided to to explore. 

     Here are the opening lines of an explanation that I found: 

Micro poetry (MP), short poetry, short-form poetry, whatever you like to call it, is a form of poetry that generally falls under 25 words in length. MP is also a fairly new phenomenon, and the term is widely considered to have been coined by W. G. Sebald (1944-2001).  The poems blend creative brevity with precise language characterized by sharp imagery and emotional depth while allowing diverse interpretations. The brevity of the genre also encourages innovations in language and structure, often leading to defiance of conventional poetic presentation and grammatical norms.

Here are samples from this Micropoetry website (follow the link to find more):

      You Fit Into Me      by Margaret Atwood

              you fit into me
              like a hook into an eye

       Luck          by Langston Hughes

               Sometimes a crumb falls
               From the tables of joy,
               Sometimes a bone
               Is flung.

The Micropoetry website offers insights and comments about these tiny poems.  AND, here is a link to more on the structures found in poetry -- an article by Sarah Hart entitled " The Patterns of Poetry . . . " and containing material from her book, Once Upon a Prime: The Wondrous Connections Between Mathematics and Literature,  (Copyright © 2023. Available from Flatiron Books, an imprint of Macmillan, Inc.)