The Art of Poetry: How to Read a Poem (review)

The clarity of this masterful study makes it seem simpler than it is. Far more than an introduction or handbook, it offers a succinct yet detailed analysis of each element of poetry. "It can be a mistake to begin a discussion of poetry with meter" is a characteristic Wolosky discrimination. Here is another: "It has... been claimed that language is itself gendered. This, however, seems to me questionable and reductive, closing women off from a full range of possible expression." Wolosky's exposition thus transcends her authoritative discussion of individual poems and aspects of poetics; for her self-appointed task is also to provide a judicious perspective on the work of other students of poetics. She eschews identity politics or fashionable jargons but is deeply familiar with a wide range of critical responses to poetry at all points in the literary tradition. Thus any given chapter, paragraph, or even sentence of the book (not to mention the excellent annotated bibliography) rewards a second and third reading. Wolosky's is an unusual and invaluable study.