A uniquely comprehensive, step-by-step introduction to poetic form, The Art of Poetry moves progressively from smaller units such as the word, line, and image, to larger features such as verse forms and voice.In fourteen engaging, eloquently written chapters, Wolosky explores in depth how poetry works while offering brilliant readings of some of the finest lyric poetry in the English and American traditions. Both readers new to poetry and poetry veterans will be moved and enlightened as Wolosky interprets works by William Shakespeare, John Donne, William Blake, William Wordsworth, Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, Sylvia Plath, and others. Featuring a comprehensive bibliography, a glossary of poetic terms, and a new appendix of suggestions for further reading, The Art of Poetry is a rich source of inspiration.
Preface ; 1. Word Choice ; 2. Syntax and the Poetic Line ; 3. Images: Simile and Metaphor ; 4. Metaphor and the Sonnet ; 5. The Sonnet ; 6. Poetic Conventions ; 7. More Verse Forms ; 8. Personification ; 9. Poetic Voice ; 10. Gender and Poetic Voice ; 11. Poetic Rhythm: Metric ; 12. Poetic Rhythm: Sound and Rhyme ; 13. Rhetoric: More Tropes ; 14. Incomplete Figures and the Art of Reading ; Appendix ; Glossary ; Bibliographical Backgrounds ; Index of Poems ; Index of Poets ; Index of Terms and Topics