About the Poet The rare poet to succeed critically and financially, Edwin Arlington Robinson rejected the twentieth century’s liberalized verse forms. His diverse application of traditional forms to the close-clipped, unconsciously cynical character study distinguished him in an era of rash experimentation. Only Robert Frost surpassed Robinson in Pulitzer Prize-winning […]
Read more The Poets Edwin Arlington Robinson (1869-1935)The Poets Edgar Lee Masters (1868-1950)
About the Poet One of America’s most cited poets, Edgar Lee Masters pioneered the psychological character study. A neglected, one-book poet offhandedly admired for his Spoon River Anthology (1915), a collection of poetic laments spoken by different characters, he maintained his appeal through repeated anthologizing of his curt, often grimly […]
Read more The Poets Edgar Lee Masters (1868-1950)How to Analyze Poetry
Poetry is a compact language that expresses complex feelings. To understand the multiple meanings of a poem, readers must examine its words and phrasing from the perspectives of rhythm, sound, images, obvious meaning, and implied meaning. Readers then need to organize responses to the verse into a logical, point-by-point explanation. […]
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