Did Bob Dylan DESERVE A Nobel Prize? w/ Joseph Pearce

[@TolkienStudy]

I’m going to take a contrary unpopular yet true aesthetic judgment here and say that I vehemently disagree with both Joseph (who I love) and Matt Fradd (who I also like). I would be absolutely happy as a Catholic (as would Bishop Barron) to defend Bob Dylan as more than a poet. He’s in an arena that has been er existed before to anyone, ever. Even Socrates. That’s saying something. It’s like those haters of Tolkien who said of LOTR “That’s not literature.” Something is happening here and you don’t know what it is, do you, Mister Fradd and Pearce? *written with the utmost respect and brotherhood

[@Digganob590]

I don't have a complete understanding of Bob Dylan's music, nor of your precise position on the definition of poetry, but I'd like to offer a couple points, and see what you think of them; If a poem must be accompanied by music in order to be enjoyed properly, I don't believe it is poetry. Poetry must be able to stand on its pure language, without the aid of other arts. Either read, or spoken, though preferably, of course, both. As Bob Dylan wrote almost only songs whose lyrics must be accompanied by music in order to be enjoyed properly, I don't believe he can be called a poet primarily. He would be a lyricist. Perhaps you could call his work literature, but very loosely. There are, perhaps, better candidates for literature, who engage in the art in a more pure manner, which conforms more to the purposes of literature. I would also admit, however, that arts which are not poems, may still have poetic elements. Thus, a piece of prose may be "poetic," without being poetry. Much more so for most lyrics, having such elements. But the poetic qualities of songs cannot be used to call them poetry, unless they can stand alone as poems, unaccompanied. So that a poem might always be made a song, but a song may not always be made a poem. As for Tolkien, regardless of the quality of his literature, which is doubtless very high, it is undeniably literature. The same cannot quite be said about Bob Dylan's songs being poetry, at least not most of them. Though they may, in the loosest sense, be considered literature, due to their being composed of words. But I would be hesitant to do so, just as I would be hesitant to call any ordinary poet a master of literature, regardless of the quality of his work. Let the greatness of one artist remain within his own domain, I say, or it will become, in the midst of arts with that other intent, merely a defective attempt in those other domains. Like a picture of a sculpture being submitted as a great painting.

[@chryphex]

@@Digganob590 I don't think you need music to enjoy Dylan's music - a lot of it works as pure poetry. The problem with your argument is that a lot of historical works of poetry were meant to be enjoyed properly with music. For example, the Iliad was composed to be accompanied with the lyre; Beowulf similarly with a harp. If your definition of poetry excludes stuff like the Iliad and Beowulf, it's too narrow.

[@Digganob590]

@@chryphex I mean the fullness of the poem. The essence of it. Like the essence of a good life. While a good life may be a great life, the fact of its lacking greatness does not make it not good. But the lack of things which make it good certainly make it not good. That is to say, I can can read the Iliad, without its intended musical accompaniment, and yet, still receive all the necessary parts of the poem. It is a wholesome and fulfilling piece of entertainment, even when only read. But only a few songs are really so wholesome, could be considered poetry, when they are not accompanied with music. Many of them are outright prosaic. Those which are not are usually reliant on the shackles of music to allow their words to strike the listener in the correct manner. It is only a few which are only enhanced, not upheld, by musical accompaniment. As you say, many songs are capable of that. But some songs, being workable as poetry, does not make that songwriter a poet by profession, only an often poetical songwriter. And it is my argument that the chosen emblem of an art should not be one whose art was only such by accident. Now, I might be mistaken, but I don't think Bob Dylan wrote his songs first as poems, but only begrudgingly turned them into songs. Nor do I even predict that he thought of his songs as a mix between the two, much like the Iliad. I think that he took to writing some of his songs after a manner similar to that of a poem, and workable as poems, though they were not made to be poems. There is a difference, I believe, between the spirit of an art, and the resemblance of an art. Many songs have the resemblance of a poem. Many may even be translatable into a poem. But it is uncommon for songs to have the spirit of a poem, for that requires them to have first been poems, or otherwise, for the poetic form to have been intrinsic and intended in the creation of the song. Poetry is poetry, song is song. A songwriter may be a poet, and that may influence his songs, but his songs are not therefore poetry, unless they were first poems. A poem may always be turned into a song, regardless of the qualities of the poem. But a song may not always be turned into a poem, for that depends on its qualities. And it must be turned into a poem. It is not a poem, regardless of its qualities, until made such. And so, a man who only writes songs is not a publisher of poems, however poetical they may be. Much as a public speaker may recite an essay, or give a speech which may be turned into an essay, yet, he cannot simply be said to be a great essayist, because his speeches may even always be written and read as essays.

[@emily43210]

​@@Digganob590When I first got into Bob Dylan I would read his songs as poetry multiple times. The music with most of his songs are so simple, the focus is the words. It's Alright Ma is in iamic pentameter, at least the part that I'm thinking of is. You can read a ton of his songs as poetry.

[@Digganob590]

@@emily43210 Huh, yeah, that is a pretty good example. I'd still argue for even that one being halfway reliant on the musical rhythm, with how syllables have to be squished together (I'm not great with poetic, or otherwise lyrical, terminology) in order to fit them into the form. Though, various manners of presenting an individual poem, some better than others, are valid, I would argue that a poem should be still enjoyable with the least soul put into the words. So that extra or fewer syllables for each line is rather a detriment in most cases to a poem, with a few special exceptions. So, though a poem may be written with those extra or fewer syllables, I think that's rather a compromise than a natural part of the art. A song writer finds no issue with too many or too few syllables for a line. That's actually a good opportunity for a more interesting melody, with syncopation and such. But for a poem, to interrupt the flow with those syllables or lack thereof is a last resort, when the alternative options to the writing of a line still don't sound as good, even with perfect syllable count. But, we're getting into the weeds of poetry, now, which are, of course, quite controversial. All I'm trying to put forward is my amateur poet's opinion about how valid Bob Dylan's work could be for a reward about literature, or to be lauded as great poetry in its totality, when there are still yet many whose focus really is on poetry and literature, and not so much split.

[@emily43210]

"Though I know that evening's empire has returned into sand Vanished from my hand Left me blindly here to stand, but still not sleeping My weariness amazes me, I'm branded on my feet I have no one to meet And the ancient empty street's too dead for dreaming... Then take me disappearing through the smoke rings of my mind Down the foggy ruins of time Far past the frozen leaves The haunted, frightened trees Out to the windy beach Far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow". -Mr Tambourine Man Also: All along the watchtower is pretty profound despite not having much form.

[@matthewashman1406]

@@emily43210 I stumbled along side of 12 misty mountains

[@cleggz1472]

anyone who says Bob isn't poetry does not know poetry. Poetry can be song, always was song before it was written down. Troubadour's ballad's, the first poetry. Poetry came from song, poetry can be more or less than Dylan. His words are so much more than music, the nobel prize is for literature, the written word, his is second to none.

[@johnbrion4565]

I’ve always felt Bob Dylan is the greatest American artist. Edit: and one of the greatest Christian songwriters.

[@brunosm.l2267]

EVERY GRAIN OF SAND In the time of my confession, in the hour of my deepest need When the pool of tears beneath my feet flood every newborn seed There’s a dyin’ voice within me reaching out somewhere Toiling in the danger and in the morals of despair Don’t have the inclination to look back on any mistake Like Cain, I now behold this chain of events that I must break In the fury of the moment I can see the Master’s hand In every leaf that trembles, in every grain of sand Oh, the flowers of indulgence and the weeds of yesteryear Like criminals, they have choked the breath of conscience and good cheer The sun beat down upon the steps of time to light the way To ease the pain of idleness and the memory of decay I gaze into the doorway of temptation’s angry flame And every time I pass that way I always hear my name Then onward in my journey I come to understand That every hair is numbered like every grain of sand I have gone from rags to riches in the sorrow of the night In the violence of a summer’s dream, in the chill of a wintry light In the bitter dance of loneliness fading into space In the broken mirror of innocence on each forgotten face I hear the ancient footsteps like the motion of the sea Sometimes I turn, there’s someone there, other times it’s only me I am hanging in the balance of the reality of man Like every sparrow falling, like every grain of sand

[@brunosm.l2267]

CHANGEING OF THE GUARDS Sixteen years, sixteen banners united over the field Where the good shepherd grieves desperate men Desperate women divided spreading their wings ’Neath the falling leaves Fortune calls, I stepped forth from the shadows To the marketplace Merchants and thieves, hungry for power My last deal gone down She’s smelling sweet like the meadows where she was born On midsummer’s eve, near the tower The cold-blooded moon, the captain waits above the celebration Sending his thoughts To a beloved maid whose ebony face Is beyond communication The captain is down but still believing That his love will be repaid They shaved her head, she was torn between Jupiter and Apollo A messenger arrived with a black nightingale I seen her on the stairs And I couldn’t help but follow, follow her down Past the fountain where they lifted her veil I stumbled to my feet, I rode past destruction in the ditches With the stitches still mending ’neath a heart-shaped tattoo Renegade priests and treacherous young witches Were handing out the flowers that I’d given to you The palace of mirrors where dog soldiers are reflected To he endless road and the wailing of chimes The empty rooms where her memory is protected Where the angels’ voices whisper To the souls of previous times She wakes him up forty-eight hours later The sun is breaking near broken chains Mountain laurel and rolling rocks She’s begging to know what measures he now will be taking He’s pulling her down and she’s clutching On to his long golden locks Gentlemen, he said, Idon’t need your organization I’ve shined your shoes I’ve moved your mountains and marked your cards But Eden is burning, either brace yourself for elimination Or else your hearts must have the courage For the changing of the guards Peace will come with tranquillity and splendor On the wheels of fire, but will bring us no reward When her false idols fall And cruel death surrenders with its pale ghost retreating Between the King and the Queen of Swords

[@brunosm.l2267]

IDIOT WIND Someone’s got it in for me, they’re planting stories in the press Whoever it is I wish they’d cut it out but when they will I can only guess They say I shot a man named Gray and took his wife to Italy She inherited a million bucks and when she died it came to me I can’t help it if I’m lucky People see me all the time and they just can’t remember how to act Their minds are filled with big ideas, images and distorted facts Even you, yesterday you had to ask me where it was at I couldn’t believe after all these years, you didn’t know me better than that Sweet lady Idiot wind, blowing every time you move your mouth Blowing down the backroads headin’ south Idiot wind, blowing every time you move your teeth You’re an idiot, babe It’s a wonder that you still know how to breathe I ran into the fortune-teller, who said beware of lightning that might strike I haven’t known peace and quiet for so long I can’t remember what it’s like There’s a lone soldier on the cross, smoke pourin’ out of a boxcar door You didn’t know it, you didn’t think it could be done, in the final end he won the wars After losin’ every battle I woke up on the roadside, daydreamin’ ’bout the way things sometimes are Visions of your chestnut mare shoot through my head and are makin’ me see stars You hurt the ones that I love best and cover up the truth with lies One day you’ll be in the ditch, flies buzzin’ around your eyes Blood on your saddle Idiot wind, blowing through the flowers on your tomb Blowing through the curtains in your room Idiot wind, blowing every time you move your teeth You’re an idiot, babe It’s a wonder that you still know how to breathe It was gravity which pulled us down and destiny which broke us apart You tamed the lion in my cage but it just wasn’t enough to change my heart Now everything’s a little upside down, as a matter of fact the wheels have stopped What’s good is bad, what’s bad is good, you’ll find out when you reach the top You’re on the bottom I noticed at the ceremony, your corrupt ways had finally made you blind I can’t remember your face anymore, your mouth has changed, your eyes don’t look into mine The priest wore black on the seventh day and sat stone-faced while the building burned I waited for you on the running boards, near the cypress trees, while the springtime turned Slowly into Autumn Idiot wind, blowing like a circle around my skull From the Grand Coulee Dam to the Capitol Idiot wind, blowing every time you move your teeth You’re an idiot, babe It’s a wonder that you still know how to breathe I can’t feel you anymore, I can’t even touch the books you’ve read Every time I crawl past your door, I been wishin’ I was somebody else instead Down the highway, down the tracks, down the road to ecstasy I followed you beneath the stars, hounded by your memory And all your ragin’ glory I been double-crossed now for the very last time and now I’m finally free I kissed goodbye the howling beast on the borderline which separated you from me You’ll never know the hurt I suffered nor the pain I rise above And I’ll never know the same about you, your holiness or your kind of love And it makes me feel so sorry Idiot wind, blowing through the buttons of our coats Blowing through the letters that we wrote Idiot wind, blowing through the dust upon our shelves We’re idiots, babe It’s a wonder we can even feed ourselves

[@brunosm.l2267]

I mean.

[@danielfrancis2208]

Most critics of Dylan are ignorant of his catalogue. They think Dylan's voice is his voice on Times they are a changin, or Blonde on Blonde. They simply don't know the depth of style and form. Anyone who has taken the time to explore Dylan's catalogue will know that he is definitely one of the greatest poets and songwriters of all time.

[@justdrewit2498]

“It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)” is certainly poetry

[@benjaminwellinger1416]

Bob Dylan is a prophet, priest and king in the music business. He sings truth. He always was a spiritual man but has become deeply religious in the last decade(s). Just read his interview from December 2022 in The Wall Street Journal. Dylan is committed to the Bible, the saints, churches. When Dylan turned to Christianity in the 1970s, he recorded the greatest christian albums ever (Saved, Slow Train Coming, Shot of Love). Infidels is another great album, though not as explicitly christian. When every artist of the 20th century will be long forgotten, the world will still remember Bob Dylan and sing his songs.

[@brunosm.l2267]

@@benjaminwellinger1416 Oh Mercy is a great album, Modern Times has terrific songs (and lyrics) in it. There's so much good stuff apart from the 60s and 70s era that is not known.

[@AZ1306AZ]

Sorry, guys. I can't agree about Dylan.

[@jkm9332]

I’m in utter shock over the blasphemy I’m hearing right now.

[@obesebilbo5824]

The problem of citing “The Red Wheelbarrow” divorced from the text on the page is that it is a concrete poem - I.e. the text itself is shaped like a wheelbarrow. You only can notice this if you read the poem.

[@dominickmiller9528]

I think it’s worth mentioning the poem is usually formatted such that the text looks like wheel barrows: so much depends upon a red wheel barrow glazed with rain water beside the white chickens

[@20ecupirate13]

“Tell me, O Octopus, I begs, Is those things arms, or is they legs? I marvel at thee, Octopus If I were thou, I'd call me Us.” By Ogden Nash

[@jackloo7233]

Highway 61 Revisited is the most lyrically perfect album in modern music history. Love yall but agree to disagree here 😂

[@east83raider3]

Dylan fans loved it. Literature fans hated it.

[@thehal]

Dylan may not be a great poet, but he's impacted the written word as much as anyone in the 20th century in the western world. He's the best lyricist ever, because he can write any kind of song - folk, blues, rock, country, gospel, soundtrack, and so on. It's the Nobel Prize for Literature, not books or poems.

[@IndyDefense]

Yes.

[@thetan01r]

How can the Catholic Church address concerns about the concentration of power and wealth in the hands of AI developers and corporations, particularly in relation to social justice and the common good?

[@mejbarron]

Jesus preached: love, forgiveness and treating other well. Bob Dylan preaches about a life of service in Gotta Serve Somebody. I consider it both poetry and it is one of his greatest Christian songs along side Man of Peace. "Gotta Serve Somebody" You may be an ambassador to England or France You may like to gamble, you might like to dance You may be the heavyweight champion of the world You may be a socialite with a long string of pearls But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed You're gonna have to serve somebody It may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody Might be a rock'n' roll addict prancing on the stage Might have money and drugs at your commands, women in a cage You may be a business man or some high degree thief They may call you Doctor or they may call you Chief But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed You're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody You may be a state trooper, you might be an young turk You may be the head of some big TV network You may be rich or poor, you may be blind or lame You may be living in another country under another name But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes You're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody You may be a construction worker working on a home You may be living in a mansion or you might live in a dome You might own guns and you might even own tanks You might be somebody's landlord you might even own banks But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes You're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody You may be a preacher with your spiritual pride You may be a city councilman taking bribes on the side You may be working in a barbershop, you may know how to cut hair You may be somebody's mistress, may be somebody's heir But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes You're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody Might like to wear cotton, might like to wear silk Might like to drink whiskey, might like to drink milk You might like to eat caviar, you might like to eat bread You may be sleeping on the floor, sleeping in a king-sized bed But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed You're gonna have to serve somebody

[@mejbarron]

Leonard Cohen said of Dylan's Nobel Prize: "It's like pinning a medallion on Mt Everest for being the highest mountain."

[@johnleebold8894]

Dylans work is so unique in regard to narrative in song … he has no peer in his commentary on modern times

[@natekrygsheld4299]

Rock may not be the best medium for poetry, but I certainly respect Axl Rose’s songwriting skills. He is an extremely talented lyricist.

[@bertryman773]

Bob Dylan views himself as a poet and said as much to Michael Bloomfield in the early 60’s when the two first met and Bloomfield criticized his musicianship. Dylan has since stated that he considers himself a poet first and musician second. He’s also said that anything he writes that can’t be put to music he considers poetry and anything he can set to music to be songwriting. In any case, I think some people here are taking exception to the form, or even taking offense to Dylan and citing the form. As people, we should be able to recognize or even honor genius and achievement while still not liking the output. Perhaps if Emily Dickinson made music and sang off key people might not have enjoyed her output and poetry form either. I for one don’t care for the writings of Hemingway, but I certainly respect and understand why he is a great writer and his importance on literature.

[@johnroberts1708]

"......in pursuit of beauty"? Really?! That definition disqualifies about half of the best poetry ever written. Tut.

[@ronreynolds1610]

Dylan is a category of his own , why be limited to just a ''poet'' , the times have changed sirs.....

[@PhillyCYOSports]

Plenty of Christian Gravy in Dylan songs.

[@paulclements6277]

Songs are just poems with music

[@jbm11235]

Would you give Robert Burns a Nobel Prize? "A poem can't be a sentence." Do we talk about what sentences are first or poems? And what exactly is the esthetic that governs this dictum? "A 1/2 dozen poems..." Maybe on a couple of his better albums...and then everything else. Bob Dylan certainly deserved the Nobel Prize for literature. This is truly weak sauce.

[@kevinjboconnor]

I'm a poet. I knew I'd be triggered by this video but I watched anyway. I recommend the following modern poets: Karen An-hwei Lee (loosely a Christian poet, or Christian apologist maybe); Charles Wright (probably an agnostic but writes beautifully); John Ashbery (secular poet who breaks apart some of the traditionalism of poetry); Mark Strand; and many more. That said, I stopped subscribing to Poetry Magazine because in my opinion they don't publish great poetry anymore.

[@Dreskiff23]

Maybe check out Tangled Up in Blue before making such statements.

[@TheMongolianMage]

Maybe he did in another lifetime. One of toil & blood 😅

[@TheMongolianMage]

Beauty walks a razor's edge, someday I'll make it mine. If I could only turn back the clock to when God & Her were born Come in, she said I'll give ya Shelter from the storm

[@sammyd8474]

He absolutely does.

[@RustyShackleford-eq8ie]

Purity Is obscurity. -Ogden Nash

[@TheMongolianMage]

Darkness at the break of noon..

[@ThomasReeves-s7u]

I guess they really inspired the Dylan lovers! I do think they were a bit too harsh, but I mostly agree that Dylan winning the Nobel certainly felt like a desperate play for relevance at best deeply silly at worst. I'm aware Bishop Barron loves him and that Dyan did Christian work, but there are plenty of great Christian songwriters if we want to go down that path. Why this songwriter rather than some others? The idea he was the best living songwriter at that time is an opinion you can have, I guess, but it's pretty contestable. And if we are opening things up like that why not screenwriters? Maybe the Coen Brothers or Quentin Tarantino should get the Nobel.

[@BenBrossMusic]

Poetry in its traditional forms has no real place in today's society. It's largely meaningless and unknown to the cultural zeitgeist. That being said, it still subsists in the form of song lyrics and rap, both of which are currently, in most popular form, little more than repetition and simple alliteration consisting of monosyllabic or bisyllabic, consecutive words that loosely rhyme. Kids are trying to make poetry, but because all the good stuff of yesteryear is hidden from young people these days because the corrupt society is diverting their gaze, what comes out is mere baby talk, poetically speaking.

[@dyl-annfan6]

Could also argue did anyone ? could be long discussion ... and should be . It's a silly original question on my opinion

[@kevinjboconnor]

Bob Dylan has a humorous book of poetry called Tarantula from the 1960s, and a book called Chronicles, and another more recent one as well. He's a good writer. I like that the Nobel Prize doesn't have to mean as much as it used to.

[@vaednarisverse6133]

I sincerely disagree with the Nobel thing. If an honor no longer holds a high standard then what’s the point of even acknowledging it? Would you say the same of sainthood if the standard for achieving it were easier?

[@kevinjboconnor]

@@vaednarisverse6133 i guess I think the Nobel Prize is pretty distinct from sainthood.

[@johnbrion4565]

Matt Fradd obviously hasn’t listened to much Dylan. Listen to him for a few years then judge how good he is.

[@jamess7264]

Maybe he has listened and this is his opinion, like you seem to have an opinion that Dylan is a poetic genius. All opinions.

[@johnbrion4565]

@@jamess7264if you listen to the clip he says AH who was the fella, this is where hyperbole leads you and I was willing to appreciate him but now he’s crap. The fact he struggled to recall his name combined with the following comments I’d bet he’s not really listened to Bob Dylan. It took me years to begin to understand and appreciate Dylan because at a quick listen his voice is not good and songs are repetitive. The reason he is so legendary is because of his greatness as an artist. Just like many great artists aren’t recognized during their lives so Bob Dylan goes under appreciated by the casual listener. And the irony is that the poem Matt said he likes, Dylan’s songs are full of gems like that and so much more.

[@roca967]

Unfortunately I first saw him play live and found it to be pretty terrible. We couldn't make out a word of it, our friend who is a fan of his music couldn't quite tell what he was singing either. I should give his recordings a shot but boy was that show offputting.

[@johnbrion4565]

@@roca967 he’s very old now. He said he promised God he will keep playing as long as he physically can.

[@FissileThomist]

Here's the main problem. If it were poetry, he should have published it as such. He published it as music. We know the work as a song, not as a poem. While good and enjoyable and POETIC without being POETRY itself, you cannot call Dylan's music poetry. It is really just a matter of asking WHAT A THING IS. It's a song. Period. End of story. Few are disputing how good Dylan's writing is. Your passions and attachments for this man's work are getting in the way from you recognizing this simple fact that it is just a fundamental miscategorization. Stop being cringe subjectivists whining about a song being so great it's poetry. Not it's not. It's a poetically written song. Read some Aristotle. Plenty of poets are philosophical but they aren't suddenly proper philosophers like the Socratics

[@thatfatchick1846]

I've never been here this early haha

[@therevealing-studiesfromli4419]

When one looks through the spectrum of Dylan's work there is no comparison, to the degree of genius he has been gifted by the Father. Gentleman, it is obvious your lack of poetic understanding and of song writing has missed the mark. Maybe go back and cover Dr. Suess for a start ... my hat is old, my teeth are gold said the Joker to the Theif!

[@johnbrion4565]

It seems they just haven’t listened to much Dylan.

[@east83raider3]

Oh, Dylan's work is indeed on the spectrum.

[@tomasbaker1912]

I just have to say you two are in agreement into the poetry school of snobbism. Are you both christians? There you are.

[@cassellino]

So glad the comments are pro Dylan here.

[@jtlemay4878]

A season in hell

[@sentientmlem727]

I understand the sentiment of not wanting to put him up there with "the greatest" but I still think you're wrong. I think he deserves to be up there. He wrote these amazing poems first and then put the music to them later. You can put music to any poem and make it sound great. Just because he was recording albums which would then become popular doesn't delegitimize the talent.

[@peterginger]

@@sentientmlem727 He was writing poems and discovered they also sounded good when put to music. Many of his songs were poems first and then he set them to music. So they are poems set to music. By the way, he can write great music also.

[@tmoney8785]

Yikes what a take.

[@gilevin100]

You guys lost me….your missing the Dylan gene.

[@maryjordan4129]

Not a Dylan fan.

[@PaleAle29]

Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion, man.

[@suzannederringer1607]

Who is this pompous fellow? I suppose he prefers the long-winded Derek Walcott with his 'fancy' words. There's a lot of true Poetry in popular Song lyrics - from Stephen Foster through the great composers of the 1920s and '30s, to Dylan. Short, concentrated Visions...

[@PinkyIvan12]

I'm not sure if Bob Dylan is worse as a poet or as a singer with his obnoxious whiny voice.

[@Mark-qq7qo]

Since when does selling your soul for success warrant an award.

[@bornagainsheep337]

Thank you 🙏🏼 😊I was looking for someone to point this out. All I see is defense of a man who admitted that his talent left when the devil was done with him.

[@IndyDefense]

You can't take anything that Dylan says seriously. He may have indeed sold his soul, but he may have just wanted to mythologize himself like Robert Johnson and Faust.

[@joecoolmccall]

Weak.

[@FrJohnBrownSJ]

Am I the only American who is unimpressed with Bob Dylan's lyrics?

[@natekrygsheld4299]

I’m not either- never been a fan.

[@e.t.ashworth4882]

@@natekrygsheld4299 yes. yes, you are.

[@nickfrate4396]

Well, perhaps you would fall into the Bob Dylan unimpressed group of Americans. Not all of Dylan's fans are from the leftist hippie boomer generation, many are though, but that shouldn't keep you from enjoying his music or lyrics.

[@lordtachanka903]

Yeah, I agree 100%. He makes a few good songs, but music isn’t the same as poetry.

[@FissileThomist]

He makes good music for confused teenagers that I think anyone who has been prolongingly confused can relate to. However, everyone grows out of being a teenager and not everybody was equally confused as a teenager. I for one was very confuse all through high school and college, but eventually you grow out of it and find the true classics much better without totally denouncing something like Dylan as bad. All this tells me is that a lot of people never fully grew up. No offense to anyone who is a Dylan fanatic. I'd be careful to make an idol out of anything that isn't the Logos Himself.

[@cromaty3]

Any argument that uses "woke culture" is dismissed

[@ExpiditionWild]

Dylan will be remembered for generations and Joseph Pearce is a fuckin nobody