Is morbid poetry/songwriting/art really that bad?

Meowing Mewtwo

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    Well, is it?

    For many people, the answer is a firm yes, perhaps stemming from the metaphorical weak stomach. I am quite guilty of creating such things, and so that naturally leads to bias. But it is my way of releasing my stress, my way of making all of the more unpleasant parts of life seem far less augmented. Personally, I see it as a healthier form of releasing any negativity than things such as illegal drugs or, heaven forbid, murder.

    So, by all means, offer an opinion. And, perhaps, provide a bit of constructive criticism when it comes to how I spend my time.
     
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    Morbid poetry typically involves self-harm and suicide, harming others and murder, disease/plague, among many other unpleasant things, and it generally makes it disconcerting to anyone who may read it. It also kind of shows that the writer, if they're trying to convey their feelings, has serious mental/emotional issues and might need major help. It helps no one if someone even remotely caring gets their hands/eyes on the poems/songs/artwork.

    Yes, it can be better than drugs, but it can be just as harmful from an emotional standpoint. Having the poems around means the writer can brood over them, and they can start feeling even worse, and that can reflect itself through physical acts and changes in behavior.

    Personally, I get rid of my anger/depression primarily through games. (I don't mean Call of Duty and the like, since other players can exacerbate the problem.) Changing up a team in Pokémon and maybe beating the Elite Four when it seems like I have a disadvantage is really satisfying, because I'm actually overcoming a possible challenge. Maybe getting through an annoying boss fight in a different game, or just feeling the fun of starting a game that hasn't been opened yet. Listening to happy, upbeat music (regardless of genre) does a lot of good, too, since it's difficult to stay angry or sad while listening to it.
     
    Poetry is a fancy word for 'self-expression' and morbid/vulgar feelings are something we all feel at one point or another, so if poetry is someone's way of venting those pent up feelings, there should be no difference between it and 'regular' poetry, if you can even call positively oriented poetry 'regular.' There's little ambiguity involved, honestly.
     
    Well, see, there's nothing inherently wrong with writing morbid material (say, as an artistic experiment). However, if one immerses oneself too much in the morbidity of the writing, then one may eventually contract various psychological disorders ... and that, obviously, would be fairly undesirable. So I would recommend that if you feel the need to feel better by repeatedly expressing yourself through morbid poetry, it would probably be a good idea to find another, healthier outlet and / or resolve the actual issue which is influencing your emotions.
     
    I think it's okay, so long as it doesn't...mess with your life, I guess. T: Like change your outlook on things and/or the way you think. It's a good way of venting, and I've done it plenty of times.

    Morbid/gorey/disturbing art isn't necessarily bad on its own, especially if done tastefully. I met a member of another forum who posted drawings of rotting corpses and the like; it was gorey, yes, but the quality of the art itself remained.
     
    I think art, including poetry, is about moving an audience one way or another, to get some message to them. Art can be about self-expression, but it doesn't mean everything morbid is a reflection of the person. I'd ask what the person making morbid art is attempting to do and how successful they're being.

    When you show it to other people I'd wonder why you're doing it. Is it to see who shares your interests? That's okay, I think. People have interests in lots of things that could be morbid while still being balanced mentally. There's a difference between an interest and an obsession. Is it to get technical feedback on your artistic skills? That's totally okay. Is it to attempt to shock people? That could be okay, if you're doing it because you think your audience needs some kind of shock (like say, if you think people are being apathetic about a war), but if you're doing it so that you can become someone-who-shocks-people then that's really more an ego thing.

    My own personal tastes are not for overly morbid things generally. I like Halloween and forensics shows, but I don't like movies with gore or downer endings. I also don't really care for "self-expressive" art. I don't think it's as good because it's not really made for an audience. I mean, it can be, but if someone's goal is "I want you to know how I feel" I'd respond with "Why?" It's the why that matters to me, and with morbid stuff I feel like 2/3 of it either doesn't think much about the why or it's reasons aren't ones I care for.
     
    It's really only bad if it's for attention and/or money, in my opinion. An example of this would be much of today's music that falls into the dreaded "Pop-Punk" category, this being an example of showing morbidity for the sole purpose of making money off of Hot Topic-obsessed wannabe goths. However, an example of good and morbid works would be Edgar Allan Poe's classic poems and short stories, of which the morbidity reflects his troubling life and bleak outlook of the world.
     
    For my experience artwork with a morbid theme often tends to be a lot more interesting than those with 'standard' themes. In order to create such a morbid piece there must be some strong inspiration behind it as people don't often wake up thinking "Hmm, time to write a song about death and suicide!" unless they've been driven to a place by events in their life which would lead them to feel this way, so the emotion that goes into these pieces often feels a lot more real and relatable than the the standard themes of love and such. That's not to say that pieces based on love can't have the same impact, but with the amount of work produced nowadays sharing this common theme due to it arguably an area that's pretty easy to write generically about, it just doesn't feel as personal or involved from the creator as it could do.
     
    The way I view it is that it is a horror movie but in music form, if horror movies are ok then horrorcore music should be too. I listen to artists like Twiztid and Prozak all the time, they have that Horrcore style but not in every song plus they put together the ones that are in such a way that i just love them.
     
    I haven't touched this thread in essentially two years, and this account in about one-and-a-half, but I've returned to add simply that I sincerely appreciate all input! It was surprising to come back to all of these replies. If I'm being honest, I still love dark creativity after all this time, and I don't see that changing any time particularly soon.

    However, I agree with most facets of these responses. I will admit that I retain a rather bleak outlook on life, but I'm not a total downer. My music taste spans from Mozart to Hey Ocean! to Mindless Self Indulgence, so if I'm being fair to myself, my music taste reflects multiple aspects of me. I really do appreciate everyone's input! Thank you very much, all of you.

    Cheers!
     
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