Analysis Of Billy Collins Introduction To Poetry

In his poem, Introduction to Poetry, Billy Collins uses imagery to present a philosophy on how to experience poetry. His choice of words appeal to the readers senses by creating an emotional experience. In the first stanza, the speaker says “I ask them to take a poem and hold it up to the light like a color slide.” When holding up a color slide to the light you can see any colorful image, unlike having a dark square in your hand. The speaker is appealing to the readers visual senses and wants his readers to examine poetry closely and view it as if it was seen through light, to fully visualize the vast meaning of the poem. In the third stanza , “I say drop a mouse into a poem and watch him probe his way out.” When a mouse is in a maze it is

In the fourth stanza the speaker says “or walk inside the poem’s room and feel the walls for a light switch.” When first going into a dark room you feel disorientated until you find the switch and you're able to see the light. Going into a dark room is like reading a poem for the first time you feel lost but once you reread the poem and pay close attention to what the poem is really saying you're able to see the emotions and feelings within that poem. In the fifth stanza the speaker says “I want them to waterski across the surface of a poem.” When on a waterski you are swiftly gliding on top of the water. The speaker is saying it is okay to just enjoy the surface of a poem and not go deep into its meaning. He is also saying that while reading a poem your opinion is all that matters as he says “waving at the author’s name on the shore” you must still acknowledge the author but what he feels does not really matter compared to what you feel. The speakers philosophy of experiencing poetry is through

His choice of words appeal to the readers senses by creating an emotional experience. In the first stanza, the speaker says “I ask them to take a poem and hold it up to the light like a color slide.” When holding up a color slide to the light you can see any colorful image, unlike having a dark square in your hand. The speaker is appealing to the readers visual senses and wants his readers to examine poetry closely and view it as if it was seen through light, to fully visualize the vast meaning of the poem. In the third stanza , “I say drop a mouse into a poem and watch him probe his way out.” When a mouse is in a maze it is usually for experimentation and the mouse has to try different approaches to discover his way out. He wants readers to think about poetry in various ways and experiment with ideas about the poem to find the meaning of the poem. In the fourth stanza the speaker says “or walk inside the poem’s room and feel the walls for a light switch.” When first going into a dark room you feel disorientated until you find the switch and you're able to see the light. Going into a dark room is like reading a poem for the first time you feel lost but once you reread the poem and pay close attention to what the poem is really saying you're able to see the emotions and feelings within that poem. In the fifth stanza the speaker says “I want them to waterski