Why Poetry, Why Now

A great nation should make great poetry. Like so many artists and musicians and writers and poets before him—and so many that came after him—Robert Frost wasn’t afraid to say his piece or speak truth to power. He wasn’t afraid to tell what was on his mind. He wasn’t held back by convention or what was considered normal or acceptable. And that is an incredible power, an incredible resource. And we’re seeing that power all across the world today. That’s what challenges us. That’s what pushes us to be better, to be more faithful to the sense of humanity that so often can be lost in the experiences of our daily lives. — President Barack Obama