For many years, I’ve taught young writers that there are only two things that matter, two things they need to learn, and that the entire universe of literature is contained within those elements: images, and (honest) emotions. Now, it seems, I’ve been proven correct:
Notably, readers did not at all agree on what poems they found appealing, an outcome that supports the notion that people have different tastes; nonetheless, there is common ground—vividness of imagery and emotional valence—in what explains these tastes, even if they vary.
…What Gives Poetry Its Aesthetic Appeal? New Research Has Well-Versed Answer (NYU)
It’s always fun to see the academy catching up to that which artists and musicians have known for, oh, fifteen thousand years?