Poets on Poetry

These sixteen short works provide a unique opportunity to examine and compare the theories of English and American writers who have given form and direction to the poetic tradition in English. From Sir Philip Sidney's "An Apology for Poetry" to E. E. Cummings's "Three Statements", they constitute a body of documents essential to understanding of the historic development of that tradition. In his introduction, Charles Norman examines the nature and importance of each piece and finds that all have in common the fulfillment of the poet's function as guardian of form. -- From publisher's description.