Is It Copyright Infringement to Recite Poetry?
Every poet is the sole owner of their work and determines whom they can give a right to use or perform their work. Citing someone’s work without permission can invite legal action to your doorstep.
What is copyright infringement?
This includes plagiarizing someone’s work, copying their books, selling their work without permission and reproducing their performances or any kind of material associated with them.
Are there international copyright laws?
Each country has their own laws to protect the rights of writers, poets included. Such laws grant poets exclusive rights for their work which includes the right to distribute or perform their work. The purpose of granting writers this protection is to give them the economic incentive they need to continue creating and also encourage creativity from others for the growth of the industry.
What to Do to Prevent Infringement on the Rights of the Copyright Holder When Reciting Poetry?
Get permission from the copyright holder: Poetry, like any other creative work is protected by copyright laws. Before reciting or quoting any part of poetry, get permission from the author to avoid legal action being taken against you. The permission should be in writing and the permission granted should also be in a written form. When seeking permission, state clearly your intention and the period you intend to use the author’s work.
Give credit to the author: When you recite a line from the poet’s work, then it is good to give them credit by stating their name. Attributing the work to the original owner is an honor which you can give to the author. But always make sure you are attributing the work to the rightful owner because anyone can claim that the work is theirs. Carry out a research on the owner of the work before you cite it.
Understand the local copyright laws: Each country has their own laws to protect their writers. Before reciting anyone’s work, it is of great importance to understand the local laws of where the poet is from. By understanding them, you get to know what the laws protect and what kind of work is protected. Some countries laws limit reproduction or citing author’s works for a limited time while other countries restrict the same to their region only.
Understand the licensing agreements: You may have gotten permission to recite the poetry you want but also that comes with an agreement. It is good to check because the agreement might limit you to reciting some part of the poetry and you end up reciting all of it. Or limit you to certain audience and you recite to a different audience.
Check if the poetry is legitimate: Before reciting poetry, first check for plagiarism because not every work out there is legit. Always cite poetry from credible publications like books and legitimate articles. Most of the online work is plagiarized, so before citing any work, first check if it is the original work of the author.
Be wary of poetry from unknown authors: Just because a poem is from an unknown source does not mean it is free to be cited. Poetry from unknown sources is still someone’s property and not using it properly might learn you in problems. Always check at the disclaimer from the author, as it might state how they want their work to be used by others.
If you like it, you can purchase it: If you want to use an author’s work for a long term project, then the best way is to buy it out. Thus, you become the owner and can cite, reproduce it without any legal constraints. Some authors are ready to sell their work, and if you reach a buyout agreement, make sure it is well documented to prevent future legal tussles. Every agreement you reach with the author should be in writing.
Understand the fair use guidance: This is not a law but rather a general agreement on the use of poetry. It is not uniform to all literary works but works differently for each of them. If you cannot get consent from the author because of unavoidable circumstances, then you can cite their work for a specific reason and not commercial use.
Take everything you read to be copyrighted: Assume every work that you read online to be copyright. Research widely on each literary work before you find yourself using an intellectual property that is not yours. When you assume everything is copyrighted, then you will not just cite an author’s work without understanding the legal agreements.
Know what rights you need: Every poetry work you want to cite you must assume it is protected, and when you want to use it, you have to know what rights to seek. The owner might restrict reproduction of their work to a specific geographical region. Also the owner might restrict their work to a certain period of time or grant permission to be used by anyone after their copyright period has elapsed. Knowing these rights will put you in a good position to negotiate with the author for the right kind of agreement.
Bottom line
Every Poet’s work is protected by copyright laws but also such laws have their exceptions. This includes fair use which allow for limited use of copyrighted work for specific purposes such as education, reporting of news, documentary or commentary. So if you are reciting poetry for a specific purpose, then the law protects you because it is not for commercial purposes.
Therefore, you can recite poetry when you get permission from the copyright holder or when the poem is in public domain. When mentioning the title or the author you may not need to seek permission because it is like stating a fact. Also copyright laws protect the author for a certain period of time.
Some authors are willing to sell their work to be used for other purposes provided the buyer states clearly how they intend to use them. Every Poet’s original work is attributable to them because it is their creativity.