Making Your Own Days: The Pleasures of Reading and Writing PoetryFrom one of the most esteemed American poets of the twenty-first century comes a celebration of poetry and an invitation for anyone to experience its beauty and wonder. Full of fresh and exciting insights, Making Your Own Days illuminates the somewhat mysterious subject of poetry for those who read it and for those who write it—as well as for those who would like to read and write it better. By treating poetry not as a special use of language but as a distinct language—unlike the one used in prose and conversation—Koch clarifies the nature of poetic inspiration, how poems are written and revised, and what happens to the heart and mind while reading a poem. Koch also provides a rich anthology of more than ninety works from poets past and present. Lyric poems, excerpts from long poems and poetic plays, poems in English, and poems in translation from Homer and Sappho to Lorca, Snyder, and Ashbery; each selection is accompanied by an explanatory note designed to complement and clarify the text and to put pleasure back into the experience of poetry. |
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Page 21
... blue " No , no , " one may say , " two and two are four , " but that is in another language . In this ( poetry ) language , it's true that " two and two are rather green " has lit- tle or no meaning ( or existence ) , but " two and two ...
... blue " No , no , " one may say , " two and two are four , " but that is in another language . In this ( poetry ) language , it's true that " two and two are rather green " has lit- tle or no meaning ( or existence ) , but " two and two ...
Page 65
... blue as an orange ) ( PAUL ÉLUARD , " Premièrement ” ) It seems to be a lie — an orange is undeniably orange . There is a thrill of under- standing , all the same . This understanding is experiential and sensuous , like suddenly seeing ...
... blue as an orange ) ( PAUL ÉLUARD , " Premièrement ” ) It seems to be a lie — an orange is undeniably orange . There is a thrill of under- standing , all the same . This understanding is experiential and sensuous , like suddenly seeing ...
Page 76
... blue and white striped rose ... ( ELIZA , third grade ) I used to be a design but now I'm a tree ( ILONA , third grade ) These lines are in one way already " accomplished " ; the whole poems they're in aren't as good as the individual ...
... blue and white striped rose ... ( ELIZA , third grade ) I used to be a design but now I'm a tree ( ILONA , third grade ) These lines are in one way already " accomplished " ; the whole poems they're in aren't as good as the individual ...
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