The Art of Reading Poetry: From Chaucer Through Frost

“The work of great poetry is to aid us to become free artists of ourselves.” –Harold Bloom In The Art of Reading Poetry , Harold Bloom gives us his critical reflections on more than a half century devoted to reading, teaching, and writing about great verse, the literary achievements he loves most, and conveys his passionate concern for how a poem should be interpreted and appreciated. By illuminating such subjects as poetic voice, metaphor and allusion, and the nature of poetic value itself, Bloom presents an invaluable learning tool as a key to artistic expression.