Thoughts on Poetry The poem's act of completion is... The poem's act of completion is... If poetry is a matter of sounds, then... If poetry is a matter of sounds, then... Verse does not ask us to... Verse does not ask us to... A poem is the shaped... A poem is the shaped... It has been said that the difference between poetry and prose... It has been said that the difference between poetry and prose... Daring is good, failure is... Daring is good, failure is... A metaphor is an inspired non sequitur... A metaphor is an inspired non sequitur... It is through metaphor that things... It is through metaphor that things... In a strong metaphor there is an insurgent quality... In a strong metaphor there is an insurgent quality... The agency of life is to give form to matter... The agency of life is to give form to matter... A short answer to ‘Why should there be any structural form in a poem?’ A short answer to ‘Why should there be any structural form in a poem?’ We need to stop thinking of error... We need to stop thinking of error... Verse does not ask us... Verse does not ask us... To play it safe... To play it safe... The great poets speak... The great poets speak... A poem arises out of... A poem arises out of... There is a part of us that... There is a part of us that... A poem is a celebration... A poem is a celebration... To be a poet is to be attached to life by a different set of hooks... To be a poet is to be attached to life by a different set of hooks... Like any of us, poets follow... Like any of us, poets follow... Imagination starts where understanding stops... Imagination starts where understanding stops... A metaphor discovers the unity in things thought to be unlike... A metaphor discovers the unity in things thought to be unlike... A poem should say something new... A poem should say something new... Reading a poem is a... Reading a poem is a... A reader brings a poem... A reader brings a poem... A poem is a report... A poem is a report... A poem is a village... A poem is a village... Without readers a poem cannot be... Without readers a poem cannot be... The poet's task The poet's task The poem occurs when wonder and willingness conjoin... The poem occurs when wonder and willingness conjoin... The work of the metaphor is the work of... The work of the metaphor is the work of... Poetry's place is on that perimeter... Poetry's place is on that perimeter... Poetry's place is that non-Euclidean point... Poetry's place is that non-Euclidean point... When I learn that someone has read one of my poems, I go back and read it again... When I learn that someone has read one of my poems, I go back and read it again... Verse is often a term of disparagement in the poetry world... Verse is often a term of disparagement in the poetry world... Good bad poetry is verse... Good bad poetry is verse... Formal structure of any kind is... Formal structure of any kind is... Verse is not an instrument of exploration... Verse is not an instrument of exploration... Verse is not an instrument of exploration... Verse is not an instrument of exploration... Rhyme is, all at once, the celebration... Rhyme is, all at once, the celebration... “Serious” poetry is written in pursuit of an... “Serious” poetry is written in pursuit of an... All rhyme is a regulation of sound... All rhyme is a regulation of sound... Unlike verse, poetry does not bring our experience... Unlike verse, poetry does not bring our experience... When rhyme is overused, is mismatched... When rhyme is overused, is mismatched... The difference between poetry and verse... The difference between poetry and verse... If rhyme in a poem calls attention to itself... If rhyme in a poem calls attention to itself... A poem can be angry––pugnacious, mean-spirited... A poem can be angry––pugnacious, mean-spirited... There is a place in the poetry world for... There is a place in the poetry world for... A poem is a pursuit of local perfection... A poem is a pursuit of local perfection... Speech is as natural to human kind... Speech is as natural to human kind... A poem exists in its tension... A poem exists in its tension... A poem is a sound train... A poem is a sound train... Emily Dickinson's self-imposed... Emily Dickinson's self-imposed... Emily Dickinson's example permits... Emily Dickinson's example permits... Whatever language is... Whatever language is... Coming to us by the slenderest of chances... Coming to us by the slenderest of chances... A poem is a parley... A poem is a parley... Emily has done what every poet... Emily has done what every poet... Like many writers I keep a journal... Like many writers I keep a journal... The first law of language... The first law of language...
The poem's act of completion is... The poem's act of completion is... If poetry is a matter of sounds, then... If poetry is a matter of sounds, then... Verse does not ask us to... Verse does not ask us to... A poem is the shaped... A poem is the shaped... It has been said that the difference between poetry and prose... It has been said that the difference between poetry and prose... Daring is good, failure is... Daring is good, failure is... A metaphor is an inspired non sequitur... A metaphor is an inspired non sequitur... It is through metaphor that things... It is through metaphor that things... In a strong metaphor there is an insurgent quality... In a strong metaphor there is an insurgent quality... The agency of life is to give form to matter... The agency of life is to give form to matter... A short answer to ‘Why should there be any structural form in a poem?’ A short answer to ‘Why should there be any structural form in a poem?’ We need to stop thinking of error... We need to stop thinking of error... Verse does not ask us... Verse does not ask us... To play it safe... To play it safe... The great poets speak... The great poets speak... A poem arises out of... A poem arises out of... There is a part of us that... There is a part of us that... A poem is a celebration... A poem is a celebration... To be a poet is to be attached to life by a different set of hooks... To be a poet is to be attached to life by a different set of hooks... Like any of us, poets follow... Like any of us, poets follow... Imagination starts where understanding stops... Imagination starts where understanding stops... A metaphor discovers the unity in things thought to be unlike... A metaphor discovers the unity in things thought to be unlike... A poem should say something new... A poem should say something new... Reading a poem is a... Reading a poem is a... A reader brings a poem... A reader brings a poem... A poem is a report... A poem is a report... A poem is a village... A poem is a village... Without readers a poem cannot be... Without readers a poem cannot be... The poet's task The poet's task The poem occurs when wonder and willingness conjoin... The poem occurs when wonder and willingness conjoin... The work of the metaphor is the work of... The work of the metaphor is the work of... Poetry's place is on that perimeter... Poetry's place is on that perimeter... Poetry's place is that non-Euclidean point... Poetry's place is that non-Euclidean point... When I learn that someone has read one of my poems, I go back and read it again... When I learn that someone has read one of my poems, I go back and read it again... Verse is often a term of disparagement in the poetry world... Verse is often a term of disparagement in the poetry world... Good bad poetry is verse... Good bad poetry is verse... Formal structure of any kind is... Formal structure of any kind is... Verse is not an instrument of exploration... Verse is not an instrument of exploration... Verse is not an instrument of exploration... Verse is not an instrument of exploration... Rhyme is, all at once, the celebration... Rhyme is, all at once, the celebration... “Serious” poetry is written in pursuit of an... “Serious” poetry is written in pursuit of an... All rhyme is a regulation of sound... All rhyme is a regulation of sound... Unlike verse, poetry does not bring our experience... Unlike verse, poetry does not bring our experience... When rhyme is overused, is mismatched... When rhyme is overused, is mismatched... The difference between poetry and verse... The difference between poetry and verse... If rhyme in a poem calls attention to itself... If rhyme in a poem calls attention to itself... A poem can be angry––pugnacious, mean-spirited... A poem can be angry––pugnacious, mean-spirited... There is a place in the poetry world for... There is a place in the poetry world for... A poem is a pursuit of local perfection... A poem is a pursuit of local perfection... Speech is as natural to human kind... Speech is as natural to human kind... A poem exists in its tension... A poem exists in its tension... A poem is a sound train... A poem is a sound train... Emily Dickinson's self-imposed... Emily Dickinson's self-imposed... Emily Dickinson's example permits... Emily Dickinson's example permits... Whatever language is... Whatever language is... Coming to us by the slenderest of chances... Coming to us by the slenderest of chances... A poem is a parley... A poem is a parley... Emily has done what every poet... Emily has done what every poet... Like many writers I keep a journal... Like many writers I keep a journal... The first law of language... The first law of language...
