Just as we learn how to vote by comparing records, by analyzing statements, by fitting what we see and hear to our own measurements, we can develop our own standards in the process of evaluating and enjoying poetry. (RL)

Analyzes the verse of the French poets Stephane Mallarme and Guillaume Apollinaire, contrasting their purposes in suppressing normal punctuation in their work. (MM)

The author of this article provides a critical assessment on the persona in Kenneth Rexroth's poem "Doubled Mirrors." He says that the poem is a simple metaphor that beautifully illustrates something central to the human experience. Rexroth's persona tells that the two raccoons eating pears "know me and do not run away." If there is not a bond…

The theme of this symposium was the classic concern about the rhetoric-poetic relationship as applied to modern communication problems. In the first paper, "The 'Vision' of Martin Luther King," Edwin Black postulates that Dr. King contributed to the development of a "revolutionary literature" because of his impact, not only on…

Intended as a guide for students of literature, this book introduces literary analysis through discussion of forms, elements, and genres. The first half of the book focuses on theory, with each section preceded by literary passages and interpretative questions. The second half is devoted to practice, and contains three contrasting literary genre…

Over 200 participants from 10 states and 17 universities attended "The First National Symposium on Chicano Literature and Critical Analysis." Five of the papers presented at the symposium are given in this publication. The papers cover Chicano poetry, novel, drama, and popular folklore humor. "National Character vs Universality in…

Asserts that "before we can begin to discuss American literature as a national literature, we have to first decide that we have a nation.""When and if we reach the decision, we will be in a position to say how the national literature enters indigenous American and African traditions." (Author/JM)

Assuming that readers' emotional responses can enhance readers' metacognitive experiences and inform literary analysis, this study of 11th-grade poetry readers features instruction that models both cognitive and affective reading processes. The author: (1) Presents a case for more explicit attention to emotion in language arts classrooms; (2)…

Written in Spanish, the article discusses Octavio Paz's portrayal of the woman in his poem "Piedra de Sol". (NQ)

This is an abridged and modified form of an essay that the author, professor of Greek and Latin at Barnard College, delivered at the Library of Congress symposium held last spring on the hundredth anniversary of Robert Frost's birth. (Editor/RK)

Since the late 1960s the poetic muse has taken on a new style called "surrealism" or the "new surrealism". Some of the movements' best known poets, such as W. S. Merwin, Robert Bly, James Wright, Charles Simic et al., are discussed through their poetry and what it may mean for the rest of us. (RK)

Concludes that a stanza is more than just typography; it is a normative unit of a poem's development. (DD)

Suggests that poetry can be made meaningful and timely for students who read it in terms of such universal themes as the Seven Deadly Sins, the Four Cardinal Virtues, and the Theological Virtues. (RB)