Poetry is often very critical of the culture from which it emerges. Quite often literary critics of a nationalist bent talk up the national culture, in a way that the literary texts don't. Poetry can bring out areas of denial and repression.
The great law of denial belongs to the powerful forces of life, whether the case be one of coolish baked beans, or an unrequited affection.
Sin is basically a denial of God's right of possession.
It is easier to make money than to save it. One is exertion, the other, self-denial.