Poetics And Challenges in Postmodern Poetry: A comparative study of American and Azerbaijani poetry

Abstract

The importance of examining the issues related to postmodernist poetics arises from the need to explore the changes that have taken place in postmodern culture in recent years, as well as the insufficient attention given to poetic works written during the postmodern era in scholarly and critical studies. This research aims to explore the connection between the characteristics and challenges of postmodernism in poetry by analyzing the works of American and Azerbaijani poets. The study employs analytical-synthetic methods, literary sampling, and contextual analysis to achieve its objectives. This study of American and Azerbaijani postmodernist poets identifies key postmodernist characteristics: fragmentation, the blending of real and fictional elements, author’s polyphony, play with cultural signs (hypertextuality, irony, and parody), use of simulacra, layering of images and artistic means, and self-reflection. The study also revealed that fragmentation is linked to the complexity of constructing the text and maintaining the author’s overarching idea. Additionally, playing with cultural signs and symbols contributes to the reduction of cultural and historical imagery and the deconstruction of classical myths. The shift from the real to the fantastic further erases the boundaries of the author’s intended message, while the polyphony of the author’s voice leads to multiple interpretations of images and narratives. This research may serve as a basis for future comparative analyses of postmodernist works across different genres and forms, and for studying the transformations that have occurred in postmodernism over the past two decades.