“Your voice brings calmness to the chaos in my mind”: exploring the uses of poetry on TikTok

This article provides a first exploratory analysis of how poetry functions on TikTok, where the #poetry hashtag has generated tens of billions of views so far. Using three case studies, namely the Dutch poetry account @lotweijers, the English account @marthalilli, and the hashtag #sylviaplath, it demonstrates the form poetry takes on TikTok and the discourse about the genre that emerges in user comments. The analyses show that the relational aspect of accessible poems plays a significant role in how poetry functions on TikTok. However, while many TikTokers use poetry in an affective, relational, and therapeutic manner, there are also users who take a more cognitive approach to the genre, focusing on interpretations and ideological discussions about poetry. In this sense, the article nuances the idea that literary practices on TikTok are equivalent to instant satisfaction.