Here is the second post from David Riley as he covers for the Tuesday Blog
Is poetry always religious?Is religion always influenced by the politics of the day? Therefore, is Christmas poetry always political? Do you need to understand religion before you can understand most poetry, from Beowulf to the Canterbury Tales to Eliot? Do you need to know the nativity story to understand Coleridge, Rossetti and Wordsworth?How much Christmas themed poetry have you seen in the shops recently? Are poets making Christmas commercial?Is there extra exposure for poetry at this time of year? Does it help poetry?Are Christmas carols poetry?Are some more Catholic than Protestant (and vice versa)?Do they all have the same message?Is Christmas relevant any more? Is Christmas poetry important?Is it as saccharine as Christmas card verses?Are these big questions? Happy Christmas.