Physics and Poetry
“The art of physics lies in deciding what to ignore.” Brian Greene.
Greene is perhaps the world’s most famous string theorist, which is a mathematical model of the universe, and these physicists are often willing to believe a theory because of an elegant equation, following the rhythm of math. If an equation is that beautiful, it must be true. There must be multiple hidden dimensions –the world must be made of tiny strings that vibrate all around us.
You could change one word in that quote, from PHYSICS to POETRY, and it would also be true:
The art of poetry lies in deciding what to ignore.
When language leads us into a poem, when we submit ourselves to the elegance of the equation, following the music, the sound, there will be many intrusions: emotions born in our bodies, like a hurt tummy or heartburn, noises coming from outside, intrusive thoughts, intrusive thoughts, intrusive thoughts. --But somehow the poet’s language knows what to ignore.
When poets find a rhythm, it’s not decoration or artifice, but the science of tapping into our linguistic streams of consciousness, finding the hidden dimensions that make our lives meaningful while ignoring the noise of ordinary thought that often impedes our ability to imagine.