Feature Writer: 
Poetry fascinates readers for many reasons, from its unique language use to the varied subjects that poets have dramatized down through the centuries.
The Ancients, including Homer and Vergil, captivated audiences with their ability to spin a memorable yarn. Ancient Indian epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, were so easily memorized that it was centuries before anyone wrote them down.
From the Ancients to Middle Eastern and Western Eurpoean bards to early Americans like Phillis Wheatley, Emily Dickinson, and Walt Whitman to the most contemporary poets such as recent poets laureate, Louise Glück, Ted Kooser, Charles Simic, and currently Kay Ryan, the journey through poetry remains a colorful and enticing one.
Thank you for visiting. I welcome questions, comments, and/or suggestions.
Wordsworth's It is a Beauteous Evening
In: British Poetry
Tranquility engenders the finest thoughts, feelings, and intuitions. Wordsworth's Italian sonnet captures the mood that the poet took as the basis for fine poetry. more...
Yogananda's When I Am Only a Dream
In: World Poetry
Paramahansa Yogananda's "When I Am Only a Dream" offers all devoted disciples the reassurance and comfort that the guru is always guiding and guarding them. more...
In: British Poetry
Breaking her engagement with her fiancé, the speaker in Rossetti's Italian sonnet requests that he keep the pleasant and discard the unpleasant. more...
In: British Poetry
As General William Tecumseh Sherman averred, "War is hell!" But sometimes facing down hell leads to spiritual awareness unequaled by a conciliatory peace without honor. more...
In: World Poetry
The speaker in "The Toiler's Lay"expresses a sentiment that is universally common to humanity laboring in this material world to keep body and soul together. more...
Hopkins' The Habit of Perfection
In: British Poetry
Father Hopkins' poem, "The Habit of Perfection," dramatizes the importance of silencing and stilling each of the five senses in order to advance in the spiritual realm. more...
In: British Poetry
Henry Vaughn's poem appeals to the soul of the devotee who is making the effort to achieve the exalted state of Christ Consciousness. more...
In: British Poetry
The speaker in Wyatt's most anthologized poem dramatizes the nature of regret after having fallen from favor. more...
All feature articles in Poetry
All contributors in Poetry
Importance of Lines and Line Breaks in Poetry
In: Poetry (general)
By: David Todd
Word Choices Distinguish Into My Own
In: American Poetry
By: David Todd
Imagery and Metaphor in Into My Own
In: American Poetry
By: David Todd
The Bond of Arthur Hallam and Alfred Tennyson
In: British Poetry
By: Jillian Bost
Delmore Schwartz is Worth Another Look
In: American Poetry
By: Douglas Nordfors
All contributing articles in Poetry