A defence of the established order

Poet Simon Armitage sneers at Education Secretary Michael Gove's suggestion that the established canon of English poets should be taught in schools, identifying Tennyson for especial ridicule.

In last Thursday's Question Time, in a discussion on Michael Gove's proposals (a discussion in which Tennyson was mentioned by Peter Hitchens) a teacher in the audience said her class would be bored to tears if they had to read traditional poets and she would much rather they wrote poetry of their own (which presumably she would award top marks for, whatever the quality, and everyone would feel good and no-one would have to do any real work least of all the teachers).

The Band Perry had a quadruple-platinum US and UK sales of their 2010 single If I Die Young.  In the video for the single Kimberly Perry is seen reading the poetry of Tennyson and dreaming about The Lady of Shallot.  Quadruple-platinum sales means four million teenagers, and presumably they had no problem connecting to Tennyson.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NJqUN9TClM

Is it possible that Simon Armitage and the Tennyson nay-sayers in the teaching profession are the ones who have got things wrong? 

Simon Armitage started his career as anti-establishment, then became new establishment, and is now just part of the establishment.  There's nothing wrong with being establishment.  But we need to see this for what it is - a defence of the established order.

From that perspective it is Michael Gove that looks revolutionary.