Study Guide for Final -- Poetry

Above is a picture of the Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum in Baltimore.

Poetry –

Poe – canonical writer, wrote poetry, fiction, & criticism; did a lot to shape and promote American literature; poems written for performance – to be read aloud, very rhythmic; internal rhyme; always very dark & mysterious;

Baltimore; poems take place within the imagination

Emily Dickinson – liked to write her masterpieces inside her room, barely left her house, rarely traveled; wrote prolifically but barely published; manuscript poet (circulated within circle of friends and family); loved her dashes; loose—dashes used for any number of purposes (emphasis, pause, reason??); tight—consistent, concise, clear, clarity;

H.W. Longfellow – popular poet of the time -- "My Lost Youth"

Whitman – Leaves of Grass; a lot more life experience & insight on specific things; was a newspaper editor in New Orleans; desire to unify the torn country; response to Lincoln’s assassination (both O Captain & Lilacs); free verse; long lines; self-scrutiny, self-celebration, & observation;  Song of Myself