7.18.2007

an anthology's function

An anthology is for finding a few representative poems by minor poets. Large collected and selected poems are the go-to source for the bigger names. Do you read Ginsberg or Creeley in an anthology? Perhaps just a quick check of the contents page to see which poems were chosen. But generally we skip the big names in favor of sampling those poets whose work is less familiar or less widely available.

1 comment:

Jeff Newberry said...

I dunno, Jim. I like anthologies, but strictly as historical artifacts. They let you know who was in charge & what was fashionable when the thing was printed.