Summary – Shikamaru is a person who believes firmly in being one's own self and he knows that Art (in this case, through poetry) is linked to one's individuality.
Author notes – that the intellectual quotes that make up the first 53 words do not belong to her. Also, Shikamaru and everything else Naruto does not either.
Author's notes – Another monologue, this time by one of my favourite characters, Nara Shikamaru, the hot chuunin! (: Tis' about the definition of poetry, it may seem a little dry at first. CAUTION - Shikamaru is being eloquent!
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Poetry is 'the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings arising from emotion recollected in tranquillity' (William Wordsworth). It is 'the blossom and the fragrance of all human knowledge, human thoughts, human passions, emotions, language.' (Coleridge) The 'art of uniting pleasure with truth, by calling imagination to the help of reason' (Lives of the poets). Everyone knows what poetry is, everyone has their own ideas about poetry, but it's not that simple saying what poetry is. It is like describing a room, I can tell you all about my room. Perhaps I would say 'My room is blue in colour, there are two windows with curtains. There is a bed and a bookshelf.', or maybe I'd say 'My room is a place where I can find solace and quiet, where I can reach into my inner soul and just let go.' I can tell you about the boundaries and purposes about my room, but that's not the definition of room. That is the beauty of poetry; it's all about your interpretation.
Some people think that poetry is something that rhymes, that has many verses or stanzas. Some people view poetry as a way to release stress, a medium to send a message to the world about their inner turmoil. A few would have the courage to say that poetry is trash and it's not worth reading because it's too complex for them. Others might reply that poetry is for one to set one's past experiences to, much like how one about label something as 'sweet' or 'sour' because they have already encountered the taste of 'sweet' or 'sour'.
Poetry is an art because it follows no rules. Sometimes you may be given a set format, a form, but what ever you put inside is entirely up to you (1). It's not a rule, simply a boundary, just a limit. It's like how not all emotions can be expressed in words, that's a limit, not a rule (for a rule would go something like 'thou-shall-not-make-spelling-errors'). Words are a misconception, our communication is primitive. But in that way, it is beautiful, beautiful because it allows us to see it any way we want to.
Likewise, it also allows us to express ourselves anyway we want, our feelings (like how girls write those pointless I-love-you-marry-me poems to Uchiha), our thoughts and just ourselves. Heh, I bet that even you have tried to force poetry out before. You can be poetic without being lyrical... or coherent for that matter.
Poetry is a reminder that we don't have to be what others make us, we don't always have to listen to others all the time. We need not be what others want us to be. (Hey! Look at me, I'm 'lazy' and sometimes I don't give a damn about what sensei says but I turned out pretty alright!) Yes, poetry can have rhyme or rhythm or structure and all that jazz, but it's all up to you. Be yourself.
It's my life. That's my poem for you.
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(1) This is a reference to Madeleine L'Engle's 'A Wrinkle in Time', an excellent book, when Mrs Whatsit compares human life to a sonnet. It's a very meaningful statement about how humanity is given restrictions, but you are free to do whatever you want when you are alive, so I put it in here. (It's not the exact quote though)