Essay Questions

What is the relationship between the title and the first line of the poem “Poets need Not”?

Evidently, the title has dual purpose as it is the first line of the poem too. Instead of repeating the title at the first line of the body, the poet goes straight into the second line. The dual purpose of the title promotes continuity from the title to the body of the poem. Also, this technique fosters unity throughout the poem by showing that the poem is all about the ideas that should not be used to define poetry and poets.

Why does the speaker in “Hell for Poets” say: “But it's real hell for real poets when love goes right/When the war is over and the blood, the mud, the Muse depart”?

Here, real poets refer to the poets who want transcend existentialist themes, in the works, such as war and death. Publishers would make it hellish for such real poets to publish the poems as such poems they do not comply with the dictates of existentialism. Accordingly, non-existential poems are deemed irrelevant.

How is the concept of ‘Hell’ Paradoxical in “Hell for Poets”?

Hell was a source of inspiration for figures such as Dante and Virgil. However, in postmodern poetry, Hell is a source of unrealism for poets which complicates their work. Alluding to Dante and Virgil implies that prior to postmodernism, there was limited impressionism in poetical works. Therefore, the postmodern standards of poetry are making the art of poem writing non-realistic.