Exploring the relationship between Finnish youth and poetry: A generational shift or a forgotten art?

On Saturday, July 6th, the day of Eino Leino, a renowned Finnish poet, was celebrated. While the older generation may hold his poems dear, the question arises of whether the younger generation shares the same sentiment. How does Finnish youth engage with poetry?

22-year-old Nea Kastinen from Vantaa Fallbacka shares her poetry on TikTok. She discovered many fellow poets on social media when she began writing music and poetry. When asked what poetry means to her, she likens it to a diary, a medium to express a multitude of emotions and experiences, limited only by the imagination.

However, this enthusiasm for poetry doesn’t seem universally shared amongst young people. 17-year-old Nirjal Gautam, who was spending an evening with friends in Vantaa’s Länsimäki, admits he doesn’t know much about poems. Kastinen agrees, suggesting that poetry is better understood by the older generation and has been somewhat forgotten by the youth.

The sentiment is echoed by 19-year-old Lassi Lehmuskoski in sunny Kallio Karhupark in Helsinki. He believes that while traditional poetry may not be as popular among the youth, rap and song lyrics, both forms of poetry, shouldn’t be overlooked. In the dimming evening at Mustikkamaa, 17-year-old Saaga Aho shares the same view.

It is clear that rap and song lyrics captivate the youth, but what is their opinion on traditional poetry? The young people were given a task to write a verse for a poem. Once the last interviewee completed their verse, the poem was ready to be read by Lehmuskoski, a testament to the continuous, albeit evolved, presence of poetry among the Finnish youth.