AI, particularly Chat GPT, has taken the world by storm over the last few months. The mind-blowing chat bot can be used as a great universal tool, leaving most people thinking “what can’t this thing do?”
It seems that question can now be answered, as poets have realised that Chat GPT is nowhere near as skilled at writing poetry compared to an actual poet.
The team at Preply have sourced five popular poems throughout time, and attempted to write a similar poem using Chat GPT. Can you tell which one is the real poem, and which is an AI poem?
- Who has seen the wind? – Christina Rosetti
Who has seen the wind?
Neither I nor you:
But when the leaves hang trembling,
The wind is passing through.
Who has seen the wind?
Neither you nor I:
But when the trees bow down their heads,
The wind is passing by.
Who has seen the wind,
with its invisible might?
Yet we feel its cool breath,
and watch as it takes flight.
Who has seen the wind,
as it dances through the trees?
We may not see its movement,
but its presence is felt with ease.
- I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud – William Wordsworth
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
I wandered lonely as a cloud,
Amidst a field of gold,
The daffodils swayed and bowed,
In a sight to behold.
Their vibrant hues, a joyous sight,
In a sea of green they grew,
Their beauty filled me with delight,
As the sun shone through.
- The Road Not Taken – Robert Frost
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same.
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And I, with a sigh, stood,
Contemplating which to take,
Each one a different path to make.
One was well-trodden, safe and clear,
The other, unknown, and I felt fear,
But something in me longed for more,
A chance to explore and to adore.
- Bed in Summer – Robert Louis Stevenson
In winter I get up at night
And dress by yellow candle-light.
In summer, quite the other way,
I have to go to bed by day.
I have to go to bed and see
The birds still hopping on the tree,
Or hear the grown-up people’s feet
Still going past me in the street.
In winter I get up at night,
Before the sun begins to light,
The frosty ground, the icy air,
A world that’s still, without a care.
I bundle up in layers thick,
And step outside to take a quick,
Breath of the cold, refreshing breeze,
That brings me to my senses, please.
- Ozymandias – Percy Bysshe Shelley
I met a traveller from an antique land,
Who said—“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. . . . Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;
And on the pedestal, these words appear:
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
I met a traveller from an antique land,
Who spoke of wonders, grand and grand,
Of cities lost, and tales untold,
Of treasures found, and empires old.
He spoke of pyramids that touched the sky,
And rivers wide that seemed to never dry,
Of caravans that crossed the desert sands,
And kingdoms built by mighty hands.
He spoke of cultures rich in art,
Of stories passed down from heart to heart,
Of wisdom learned through the ages,
And of battles fought in history’s pages.
Can you tell the difference? (Answers below)
Amy Pritchett, linguist expert at Preply, has explained why an AI model will likely never be able to write top quality poetry in the same way any poet can.
“When you ask Chat GPT if it’s capable of writing a good poem, it isn’t afraid to address its own limitations. It states that, ‘As an AI language model, I can generate poems that adhere to certain patterns and rules of poetry. However, the concept of a ‘good’ poem is subjective and depends on personal taste and interpretation.’
“The way Chat GPT works is actually quite simple, as it uses advanced computer algorithms to understand and generate language, similar to how we as humans understand and use language to communicate. When a user interacts with the AI by typing a message, it analyses the input to understand the context and meaning behind the words. Based on this analysis, it generates a response that is appropriate and relevant to the user’s query.
“This process is known as machine learning, and the AI can improve the more it interacts with users and unique queries. However, no matter how much the machine learns when it comes to generating text, it will never be able to comprehend and replicate the intricacies and elements of creativity that’s present in our writing.
“AI is made to imitate, rather than be original. It learns to say the least surprising thing, so when you ask them to write something creative, striking, and metaphorical, it’s likely to be underwhelming.
“Poetry is seen as a form of literary art, with its heightened states of emotion, intimate address, and metaphorical descriptions. It’s art that can only be created with intense creativity and abstract thinking, something that AI is not capable of, yet…”
Answers: The first poems for each were real poems, while the second poems were written by Chat GPT.
Did you work it out?
