This study investigated whether the inclusion of biographical material about a poet contributes to or detracts from the comprehension and appreciation of poetry. Twenty randomly selected poems were presented to two tenth grade average-ability English classes. The control group listened to an audio-recording of each poem while it concurrently read a mimeographed copy of the text. The experimental group heard a biographical sketch of each poet before it heard the recording and read the poem. After each poem had been presented, the subjects took a three-item comprehension test over the main idea of the poem; then they ranked the poem on five semantic differential scales, used as measures of appreciation. Composite mean comprehension scores for the two groups were not significantly different, whereas appreciation scores were. It is concluded that the inclusion of biographical information about the authors of the poems used in this study made no significant difference in the subjects' comprehension of the poems, but it did contribute greatly to their appreciation of the poems. (Author/CK)