Who's been most influential in shaping history; authors, poets, or artists

I think authors have been more important and influential in history than poets. I see more ideas from novels spawning ideas that became realities such as Jules Verne and others. You see I'm not really sure poetry has really inspired humanity to achieve greater feats....what do you guys think? I'd like a counter-point on this if there is one.

Last edited by castlemist 07-02-2010 at 10:18:00 PM

RE: Who's been most influential in shaping history; authors, poets, or artists

While I do see where you are coming from, where you are going, and what definitions are being used, and while I hate to put up such a broad argument that might defeat much enriching discusion, I must say that they are all artists doing the same thing in the same ways to much the same effect, just with a slightly different path. nobody paints a forest green, but one can paint every tree green, if you get my drift. Art;s job is not pescribed to a whole socoiety, but to individuals who eventually comprise a world.
therefore, each has the same ability to move the individual, especialy when used in combination. Bravo for the question, I am interested to see what others think, I just don't think it can be answered without a cop-out like mine. hahaha

RE: Who's been most influential in shaping history; authors, poets, or artists

I thnk it's impossible to ascribe this kind of credit to one particular group of people. The world is always turning, and there will always be people with bright ideas and inovations. Poets and authors have often taken the word and shaped it in new ways, or made public what once was hidden. They have not been afraid to say what others were thinking. However, that doesn't mean that they are any more important than the artists, the historians, lunch ladies, garbage men, office assistants, dog walkers, truck drivers, or even the accountants in the world. We all have a role to play, and we all have a story to tell. Humanity is a single breath, not that frantic panting of a few neurotic perfectionists with pens (like me, haha).
I hope I was able to express my opinion clearly without too much rambling. It's 3:30 am right now by my clock. So goodnight...or good morning?

RE: Who's been most influential in shaping history; authors, poets, or artists

Great question, very intriging!!! I would have to agree with castlemist, that the author, is the most influential in shaping history. Although I think poetry, art, writing, jounalism, etc is all artistic expressions of what makes us human. When all is sad and done, when the day comes man has wasted away our exsistance, the real question is not what shaped history but rather what will our history be remembered as??? If an alien comes along millions of years from now to study the history of man what will he learn? If he reads books he will learn of our history, if he studies our art he will learn of our visions, but if he learns our poetry than he will truely know what it was to be human, he will learn of our emotions, our dreams, our greatest aspirations, our pain, agony, despair, our happiness, our joy, he will learn what it was that truely made us human, our soul... This is not something a book can tell you about, or can be seen in a picture or painting, poetry is the window to the soul of man for those who are blind enough to see. The true power of poetry is to take the written word and make it more, to transcend the physical elements and to create a vision of purity, to allow one to gain persective, to see through the eyes of another, to feel an emotion as the poet felt it, to revisit a memory and walk a mile in another's shoes, this is the true power of poetry!!! I personally think it is our poetry that best tells the story of our soul, and it is this that we should be remembered for, for it is this that we live for... Just food for thoughts. perhaps I see, perhaps I am blind... Purity of the soul, journey well!!! Angel aka poem buster

Last edited by angel33614 07-06-2010 at 01:55:38 AM