One in five (20%) believe classic love poetry only focuses on hetero-romantic love, while 60% claim the lack of representation frustrates them
Classic love poetry has no meaning to Gen Z Brits, according to a new study, as 77% believe the works of Shakespeare, Keats and Barrett Browning are old fashioned, while 44% think old language, such as ‘thee’ and ‘thou’ is too confusing.
One in five (20%) believe classic love poetry only focuses on hetero-romantic love, while 60% claim the lack of representation frustrates them.
As many as 16% believe the romantic works of old are sexist, while 11% believe love poetry should contain neutral pronouns. According to the survey of 2,000 Brits, in their twenties and thirties, by wine brand 19 Crimes, over half (51%) are in an unconventional relationship, resulting in two thirds believing that the notion of romance is too geared towards an old fashioned ‘ideal’ of love.
More than a third (36%) have been in an open relationship, while one in six (15%) have been in a throuple.
To celebrate modern love and people who are in unconventional relationships, ahead of Valentine’s Day, wine brand 19 Crimes, who commissioned the study into modern love and literature, has teamed up with modern poet and rapper James Massiah to re-imagine a handful of classic love poems and bring them up to date with the modern age.
James has re-created a collection of poems, from classic literature including: ‘Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?’ by William Shakespeare, ‘A Red, Red Rose’ by Robert Burns, ‘How do I love thee’ by Elizabeth Barrett Browning and ‘She Walks in Beauty’ by Lord Byron.
As an example, the opening line of the classic poem “How do I love thee?” (Sonnet 43, Elizabeth Barrett Browning), has been changed to “How do I love them all?”, to maintain inclusivity to those in relationships of more than two.
Similarly, “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”, the opening line of Shakespeare’s sonnet 18, has been reimagined to, “I don’t compare my partners, I love them both in their own way”, in an effort to enable throuples to feel included in the original text.
“She walks in beauty, like the night”, from the original Byron classic, She Walks in Beauty, is reimagined to “Live for beauty, love the night”, removing the “she” pronoun to ensure gender neutrality.
James Massiah said: “I tried to stay as true to the form of each poem as possible so that they can be recognisable. I wanted to try and resemble the rhyme scheme at least, if not the metre in the lines. It was tricky to maintain the integrity of these poems artistically because, of course, these are all great works of poetry, but I’d tried to let the sentiment follow through in some way.
“I think there’s a lot of fun to be had with these poems. I hope people can see this project as a chance to look at their love lives and realise that where they’re at, wherever they’re at, is good. Who you love and how you love is something that can flex and change over time. I think it’s about celebrating love in all its forms – with the main thing being respecting yourself and the people you’re dealing with – having clear communication —which I really tried to factor into the poems”.
It’s no surprise that 84% believe that young Brits are redefining what a modern relationship looks like, with 82% agreeing that love is love no matter what and 88% acknowledging that it doesn’t matter what type of relationship you are in as long as you are happy.
The 19 Crimes limited-edition Valentine’s label celebrates unconventional relationships including: Agape, Unicorn, Consensual Non-Monogamy and Relationship Anarchy, as well as a space on the label for consumers to be able to personalise their wine bottles with a love note.
