The Art of the Poetic Line [Paperback]

James Longenbach (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1555974880 | ISBN-13: 978-1555974886 | Publication Date: December 26, 2007

The Art Of series is a new line of books reinvigorating the practice of craft and criticism. Each book will be a brief, witty, and useful exploration of fiction, nonfiction, or poetry by a writer impassioned by a singular craft issue. The Art Of volumes will provide a series of sustained examinations of key but sometimes neglected aspects of creative writing by some of contemporary literature's finest practioners.

 

"Poetry is the sound of language organized in lines." James Longenbach opens this provocative book with that essential statement. Through a range of examples--from Shakespeare and Milton to Ashbery and Glück--Longenbach describes the function of line in metered, rhymed, syllabic, and free-verse poetry. The Art of the Poetic Line is a vital new resource by one of America's most important critics and most engaging poets.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A much-admired academic critic and poet, Longenbach (Draft of a Letter) contributes to this useful new series of pocket-sized writing guides with clear, swift prose that explains how poets have thought about kinds of lines; how the line, or the idea of the line, distinguishes poetry (even prose poetry) from ordinary prose; how reference to dramatic verse (especially Shakespeare's) can help us think about verse lines on the page; and how the kinds of line he identifies—the end-stopped (punctuated) line, the parsing line (which follows a phrase's syntax), and the annotating line (which works against it)—combine to make memorable modern poems. A set of examples from William Carlos Williams demonstrate how Williams's freewheeling prose let him evolve from less interesting to more powerful versions of free verse. Passages from Marianne Moore, C.D. Wright, Emily Dickinson, Ezra Pound and Frank Bidart also receive incisive comment. No particular line, Longenbach writes, needs to be championed at the expense of other kinds. He tries hard—some may think too hard—not to lose any beginners: the result is a short book that could be useful in college and high school courses, while also appealing to general poetry readers. (Jan.)
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About the Author

James Longenbach is the author of three poetry collections, including Draft of a Letter; five works of criticism, including The Resistance to Poetry, as well as numerous essays and reviews. He is Joseph Henry Gilmore Professor of English at the University of Rochester.

Product Details

• Paperback: 120 pages
• Publisher: Graywolf Press (December 26, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1555974880
• ISBN-13: 978-1555974886
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 5.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #39,721 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

57 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An absolute must-read for poets and would-be poets of all walks of life., February 5, 2008

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Art of the Poetic Line (Paperback)

Poet and literary critic James Longenbach presents The Art Of The Poetic Line, a discussion of the function of the line in metered, rhymed, syllabic, and free-verse poetry. Drawing upon classic examples ranging from Shakespeare and Milton to Ashbery and Gluck, The Art of the Poetic Line demystifies ambiguous elements in creating poetry to evoke mood and experience. "Poems are poems because we want to listen to them. Some poems have a prominent argument; some poems don't. But all poems live or die on their capacity to lure us from their beginning to their ends by a pattern of sounds. This is why a poem we don't understand may seem wonderfully satisfying, and this is why a poem we understand all too well may also seem wonderfully satisfying. A poem may harness the power of meter, rhyme, syntax, and line to establish and disrupt a pattern of sounds, and a poem may with equal integrity reject the power of meter, rhyme, syntax, and line. But the poet needs to understand what she is rejecting as well as what she is harnessing." Highly recommended for poetry connoisseurs, and an absolute must-read for poets and would-be poets of all walks of life.

32 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How I Wish I Had This Book Earlier!, September 20, 2008

By 

Audrey C. Friedman (Rhode Island) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Art of the Poetic Line (Paperback)

How the topic of the poetic line caused angst for the first years of my serious attempts at reading and writing poetry. Longenbach's straghtforward and smart treatise on this topic would have saved me much distress. This book will be as helpful for the beginner as for the accomplished poet or MFA student. Thanks, Mr. Longenbach. This book will be within easy reach as I know I'll revisit it many more times!

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Making Poetry Understandable, June 24, 2009

By 

Frances Haas "A close reader" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Art of the Poetic Line (Paperback)

Mr. Longenbach manages to explain poetic terms in ways I could understand, and I have read many poets/editors on how to write poetry. He presents a good discussion on why we should keep poetic structures by showing the power of the structured rhymes. These selections are not Hallmark type verses, but finely wrought poems which stick in the mind. He explains the value of sound in composition.