Q&A: Haredim and Poetry
Haredim and Poetry
Question
Hello Rabbi Michael,
In light of your deep and broad research on poetry, and in light of your familiarity with the Haredi world, where exactly did the connection between Haredim and poetry get stuck? Why don’t you see poetry among them? I’d be glad if you could help me sharpen the point.
This is not connected to the “just Torah” culture, because literature does exist there. And it’s true that they need everything to be informative, with content and a message in every composition, but poetry too can contain a great deal of content, and great sages throughout the generations engaged in it.
I’d be glad to hear your opinion.
Answer
Hello.
I don’t know how to explain it. But it seems to me that Haredim in general simply do not grant legitimacy to involvement in art. And in my opinion, what you wrote—that there is literature there—is not correct. There are books there (mainly for children), but not literature.
Discussion on Answer
I assume that to the same extent, poetry will also begin.
See here:
https://iyun.org.il/article/Book-Author-and-Story-The-Social-Role-of-the-Book
I understand. We need to dig into why not art.
As for literature, your words were really correct until a few years ago, but more and more a literary trend is spreading, and of course mainly among women writers.
In any case, thank you.