Macleish And Billy Collins

Everyone has a unique viewpoint on the world, but we often fail to reap the benefits of others' viewpoints because we don't hear what they are trying to communicate. In the poems “Introductory to Poetry” by Billy Collins and “Ars Poetica” by Archibald Macleish, both authors address the topic of language and communication, but also different ways to experience art, such as poetry. While Archibald Macleish uses tone and imagery to create an other-worldly experience as a way to describe the pleasure gained from reading poetry, Billy Collins uses a more direct and concise path to explain his message to the audience. Both Collins and Macleish emphasize the importance of how a poem sounds. On one hand, Collins draws attention to the line “or press

In contrast with the three couplets and three tercets, this fourth line automatically catches the reader’s eye. This line also contrasts with the rest of the poem because it is written in iambic tetrameter, whereas the rest of the poem is free verse and lacks any set rhythm or structure. Adding a very structured rhythm to the line highlights it even more. Overall, Billy Collins used several techniques to make this line’s content, idea, and rhyme cohesive and to draw even more emphasis to the idea of sound being particularly important. Similarly, Macleish repeats the idea of being quiet throughout the first stanza of “Ars Poetica”. Words such as “mute” (Machleish, ln.1), “silent” (ln.5) and “wordless” (ln.7), all strongly suggest that one must “hold his tongue” in order to comprehend everything the poem has to offer. One must silence their

“I ask them” (Collins, ln.1) and “I say” (ln.5), show the narrator is in an authoritative position compared to “them” (the students). It is evident to the reader exactly what the narrator is trying to guide his pupils towards doing. In line twelve, he says “but all they want to do”, showing that he lacks the skill to motivate and educate his students to go about analyzing a poem correctly. Also, the multitude of upbeat metaphors used to describe the way to go about analyzing a poem infers that the narrator is of a younger age. In contrast, the narrator of “Ars Poetica” seems older and more mature. “Dumb as old medallions” (Malceish, ln.3) could be interpreted as a younger generation looking at something from before their time, however I believe in this context it is referring back to the narrator’s past. Medallions are often times sought after and treasured for only a temporary time after they are awarded, and are soon forgotten or discarded. In hindsight, it may seem silly or ridiculous how much value was put on something that quickly lost its value. The narrator seems very exact on how she states her opinion, and the tone implies that her words are very thought out and meticulous. The imagery is centered on aspects of nature such as “fruit” (ln.2), “birds”